This Is Just History Repeating
by missdallywinston
Summary: Years after Ezra's fallout on the A-Team, he is determined to win Aria back. But, once he does, what will happen when a new A comes around and threatens the already shaky relationship?
1. Chapter 1

**(A/N:) Hi everyone! Here's my new multi chapter fic! It's quite different than my last one, but it's still great in my opinion! BUT before you start, two things- ONE, I had posted this as a two shot months ago and it was only 3 years after everything. But now it's 5 years after everything and edited better. TWO, and this is an important one - Ezra never wrote a book. Ezra and Aria never fought on a ski lift. This is more five years after 4x18 opposed to 4x20. **

**Alright, done. Hope you enjoy this! And don't forget to read a nice review at the end! :)**

Chapter One

Aria unlocked her apartment and went inside. She couldn't help but make connections with her mind. How many times had she walked into Ezra's apartment? Stopping while ahead, she sighed and went through her mail. She was now twenty-three and living in San Francisco, California. She was attending an arts college and tried tackling a million different careers. She took up painting, acting, singing, and anything that she could thrust her pent-up emotion into.

After the first semester of senior year, she took the rest of her classes online and got into her college early admission program. She had to get out of Rosewood, so she did.

She remembered everything so vividly as if it was yesterday. She remembered catching Ezra red handed. She remembered the girls suspecting him prior to his reveal. She remembered how he tried to explain, but only made things worse. She remembered Alison confirming everything. Her heart might as well stopped.

Well, that's kind of what it did. Ever since she found out Ezra was against her and backed the A Team, Aria had major trust issues. And it wasn't like she avidly went out to find guys. What? Would she go to a bar to pick up some man up? Bars and boys were like body bags and stab wounds to her.

She never spoke to Ezra again. That December was the worst month of her life. He broke her heart. Actually, he did worse than break her heart. He broke her heart as well as every bone in her body, metaphorically speaking. She was shocked that he hadn't been shipped off to prison. Aria knew that he had confessed to endless criminating things. He made CeCe kill Wilden. To give Ezra some credit, he only wanted Wilden gone because he tried to kill Aria, but it still didn't make it okay. He drove the car into Emily's house. He was Ali's mystery man under the name of Boardshorts. That's just about all Aria knew. She didn't want to know anymore, either.

All of her friends didn't want her to leave and neither did her family. They all said, including her parents who had to be let in on some of the gruesome details, that they could have Ezra leave and she could stay, but Aria couldn't stay in Rosewood. She just couldn't.

As Aria shrugged her coat off and walked further into the apartment, she felt her pocket vibrate. Even though A was long gone, she still jumped every time. She wondered when – if – that feeling would ever go away.

It was an unknown number, and out of curiosity, she answered. "Hello?"

Nothing.

"Hello?" Aria said into the phone again, growing more impatient. When she was met with silence, she huffed and hung up, shoving her phone back into the pocket.

XXXX

Ezra rubbed his face and felt his eyes moisten once he heard her voice. _What the hell was he doing?_ He thought as he looked out the window. He could see the Golden Gate Bridge from his view and stepped onto the tiny hotel room patio.

Ezra pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one up. He started smoking once she left. He'd also taken in a lot more scotch. He couldn't believe himself. Had he really just flew all the way from Philly to San Francisco to see a girl who he was positive would slam the door in his face? What was he thinking? Was he even thinking at all?

He pulled out a slip of paper that had been deep in his coat pocket for a while now. He grazed the ink with his finger and decided if he should really go through this crazy plan.

The crumpled post it read:

_Aria M._

_421 Cedar Pine Avenue_

_Urban Terrace Apartments_

Ezra knew that she moved to San Francisco after Christmas of that awful year. Now, here he was, a full five years later, still in love with her. He knew she probably still had an inkling of love for him, but it was most likely very small and locked away deep inside her heart. His love for her, however, was crystal clear and painfully obvious.

He had concocted a plan to go see her and talk to her. He had to be with her, face to face.

XXXX

On that same night, Aria, as always, enjoyed a night of waiting on the arrival of Chinese take-out and music playing loud. She'd started blaring her iPod instead of watching movies because it reminded her too much of him.

Ezra parked his rental car across the street and walked through a back entrance of her apartments. What the hell was he doing? He knew, from looking her up online, that her apartment number was 6H. He clomped up the stairs, wondering if this was what Aria had done every day since that terrible winter. He finally reached the sixth floor and thought about running all the way back down, hopping in his car, and speeding all the way back to Philadelphia. But it was too late. There was no going back now.

6A…

6C…

6F…

**6H.**

He took in the number and letter on the door. One more time, he thought about what the hell he was doing. He heard music blasting from inside her apartment and wondered if he were to knock, if she would even hear it. This was all such a waste of time.

_Come on. You can do this_, he told himself.

He took in a sharp breath and knocked on the door loud enough so she could hear it. He heard her shuffle around in the apartment and turn off the music.

Aria dashed from the couch to her speakers and turned the volume to mute. She grabbed a few dollar bills from her wallet so she could tip the delivery person. "Just a second," she hollered at the door, unclasping the buckle on her purse.

Ezra knew it was his last chance. He could bolt now and she'd never know he was here. He could slip out without a trace. But no, he wanted to see her. He needed to.

Aria pulled three crisp dollars out and headed to the door. When she swung it open, she felt her stomach drop as well as her jaw. It felt like she was about to pee her pants and vomit all over the place all at once. The room spun around her and she forgot how to blink, speak, or breathe.

Ezra gulped audibly once the door was ajar and felt his palms clam up. He watched her eyes bulge out of her head and her jaw hit the floor. He was happy she didn't slam the door and forget anything ever happened.

Neither of them spoke and they heard someone coming. Aria peeked out a bit and saw a person dressed in Hung Fu Garden attire carrying a bag of food. "Miss Montgomery?"

"Uh, yeah, um, that's me," she stuttered.

"Here's your food and your receipt," he said, handing it over to her. She took it in her hands and set it on a table inside. Aria gaze fell back onto Ezra, but then she realized Delivery Boy was still there.

"Can I get my receipt back?"

"Right," she laughed awkwardly. She grabbed the second slip of paper off the table, signed it, and handed it to him, along with the tip. "Thanks."

The guy nodded and headed back down stairs. It was back to just Aria and Ezra in the hallway and the air was heavy.

"Can I come inside?" Ezra asked, barely above a whisper.

Aria inhaled and opened her mouth to speak, but closed it, not knowing what to say. She nodded meekly and went back inside. Ezra followed and closed the door behind him.

"Aria, I know – " Ezra dove in.

Aria whipped her head around and placed a hand on her hip. "How do you know where I live?" she interrupted.

"There's a lot of information on the internet," he shrugged, as if this was no big deal.

Her eyes doubled at his response and she yelled, "You shouldn't be here."

"I know."

"Then why are you!?" she screamed, infuriated.

Ezra ducked his head. "I needed to see you."

She laughed sarcastically, "What, you didn't see enough of me on those cameras of yours a few years ago?"

Ezra sighed, "Aria…"

"Wait, were you the call I got earlier?" she remembered. "How do you even know have my new number? Oh, right, you're probably still stalking me! You probably know everything that's happened to me since I left Rosewood. You probably put a fucking microchip inside of me or something!"

Ezra pleaded, "Aria, please."

Aria stuck out her neck and looked at him incredulously. "Please what? Please stop yelling at you for ruining my life! You broke my heart! You broke me!"

She felt her throat swell and her eyes get damp. "You broke me," she repeated quietly.

"I'm sorry. I really… I'm sorry," Ezra said, raising his eyebrows.

"Stop," Aria whispered. "Stop! How dare you come here! How dare you come across the country just to screw me over again!"

"Aria, please listen to me. Just hear me out."

Aria stared at him, steam practically coming out of her ears and nostrils. Ezra made a move to come closer and Aria took a wide step backward. "Don't come near me."

Aria started breathing heavily and felt like she was going to faint. She felt her heart beating faster and faster. She clutched the edge of the couch, trying not let her knees go out from under her.

Ezra, who could clearly tell she was having a panic attack, disobeyed her orders, and rushed to her side. "Aria, calm down. Please, you're scaring me, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you," he stated, wrapping an arm around her waist to prop her up.

Aria quickly shrugged him away, but Ezra resisted and helped her onto the couch. Once she sat up, Ezra traced circles around her back and chanted, "It's okay."

Aria scooted a couple of inches away and started getting her breathing back on track. After a few minutes, she wiped away her tears and sighed. She turned to face him and choked out, "Ezra, why did you do it?"

Just hearing her say his name sent chills up his spine. "I did it because of Mona."

"What do you mean?"

"Mona blackmailed me."

"Why? For killing Alison?" Aria accused.

Ezra was stunned. "Aria, I didn't kill her. I told the girls that. I figured they'd pass that along."

"No, uh, once I left, I didn't want them to bring up anything about A – you – or Alison."

"Oh, well, CeCe admitted to burying her. There was press conference and Alison came home. A lot happened," Ezra explained.

Aria cocked her head. "How did you get out of everything?"

Ezra flinched, "Uh, my mom got me a pretty good lawyer. She – "

Aria interrupted again, "You committed, like, a plethora of crimes! Digging up a body, murder, statutory rape…"

Ezra flinched at the word rape. "What?"

"You and me. You and," Aria faded out, "Alison."

"Aria, you know that – "

"I could still press charges, you know?" she threatened.

Ezra begged, "Can you let me finish a sentence?!"

"Fine," Aria rolled her eyes.

"CeCe confessed to a lot. And so did Melissa and Wren."

"Melissa? Wren?!"

"You left before the others found out. Melissa was in charge of it all."

"I thought you had that honor," Aria snarked.

"After you left, I went to Spencer, Emily, and Hanna and told them everything. I would've told you, too, but you were gone and they wouldn't give me your new number."

"Well, you're here now. Tell me."

"I was with Ali that summer in Cape May. She thought she got pregnant. The night she disappeared, she called me. She told me about how she was pregnant and needed money. Then, she said something and I realized she was lying about it. She said if I didn't give her money, she'd tell everyone how I took advantage of her. I had a girlfriend, Aria. I had a lot going for me. Alison just kept shouting and shouting at me so I pushed her."

Aria's eyes bulged as she gulped. It was as if she was camping and one of her camp mates was telling a silly ghost story.

"She hit her head on a rock and there wasn't anyone around, so I just ran. But, CeCe and Melissa saw. They decided to use it to their advantage and buried Alison."

"But, the shovel…"

"Alison fell on a rock when I pushed her. Remember how Mrs. Grunwald told you about how the side of head was bloody? That was from me. She fell and hit the side of her head. Later, CeCe told me how she dragged her from their and her and Melissa started digging. As they were digging, Alison woke up and Melissa hit her from behind. They thought they had killed her, so they threw her in the hole. But, she wasn't dead."

"So, where's Melissa now? And CeCe?"

"Oh, CeCe's got twenty to life."

Aria's pupils doubled, "How?"

"Attempted murder, arson, auto theft, and killing Wilden."

"She took the blame for Wilden? Even after…"

"I know I shouldn't have made her kill Wilden. But, other than CeCe's word, they couldn't prove that that's why she killed him."

"So you just let her go to prison?"

"Aria, I feel bad, but I wasn't about to go to prison."

"What about Melissa?"

"Well, you know the Hastings. She got off with community service."

"Wren?"

"Wren assisted in digging up the body and covering up Ian's death."

Aria huffed and shook her head, still not believing this was happening. Not believing Ezra was an arm's length away.

"Look, Aria, I got away with a lot. The defense attorney didn't have enough evidence to prosecute me."

"So what happened to you?"

"I had to leave Rosewood. I had community service. I have a parole officer now, too."

"So was it worth it? Were all those hateful texts worth it?"

"I never sent any texts," Ezra muttered.

Ari laughed, "Oh, so Mona was the one making literary references to Tom Sawyer?"

"I might have sent a few… but none to you."

Aria clapped her hands and chuckled coldly. "Aren't I special?!"

"Aria, Spencer forgave Toby. Why can't you forgive me?"

Aria couldn't believe his comparison. "You did a lot worse than Toby ever did."

"I know that," Ezra said, moving closer to her. When Aria didn't flinch or push him away, he felt like he won a victory. "But, please forgive me."

"Wait, how did Mona fit in?"

"Mona knew that I was with you and that I was with Alison. She said if I didn't fund or help, you'd get hurt."

"Yeah, well, I got hurt anyway."

Ezra tilted his head. "No you didn't. Emily almost got sawed in half. Hanna got hit by a car. Spencer got sent to a mental institution. What happened to you?"

"I got almost pushed off of a train with a dead body!"

"That wasn't the A – Team. Wilden knew we were trying to kill the NAT club, which he was member of, so to get back at killing friends of his, he tried to kill one of our loved ones."

Aria let his words sink in before sitting straight up and making an epiphany. "You were there, weren't you?"

"Where?" Ezra asked.

"The Halloween train."

"Yeah," Ezra admitted. "Uh, Mona took the blame, but I was the Phantom of the Opera. That's how I got there so fast."

Awkwardness settled into the air and both Ezra and Aria were silent. Aria couldn't believe some of the things she was hearing. CeCe was in prison. Melissa was in charge. Wren was involved. Melissa and CeCe "killed" Ali. Ezra had pushed her.

"Did you ever want to push me?" Aria whispered, bravely looking up at Ezra.

"Aria, that summer I was in a bad place and Alison was… Alison."

"You never answered the question!"

"Once. But, I didn't want to kill you or anything. I actually stopped CeCe from hurting you a lot of times."

"Do you want a medal?" Aria snapped before softening. "When did you want to push me?"

"Aria, I don't want to talk about it."

"Then why did you come all the way to see me?"

Ezra clenched his jaw and answered. "It was when I found out you knew about Malcolm. That's why I went to the school instead of talking to you later. I couldn't…. push you…. if there were people around."

"Wow," Aria exhaled. The room got quiet again. "Did you ever really love me?"

Ezra's jaw dropped. "Aria, I've loved you since I first saw you in that bar. When I talked about love at first sight in class, that was directed at you. I love you."

"Still?" Aria whispered.

"Still? I love you just as much as I always have."

Aria gasped inaudibly. "Ezra, we haven't even spoken in five years."

"Well, we could make up for lost time. I'm staying here, in San Francisco, until I want to go back home."

"It's not that simple," Aria explained, shaking her head. "I can't just forgive you for all the things you did."

"The other girls did," he shrugged.

Aria snickered, "Yeah, well, they weren't in love in with you while you tortured them."

Ezra was about to bring up the fact that he never tortured her, but decided against it. "Do you still love me? Like, even a little bit?"

"Ezra, I – "

Ezra interrupted this time, "I still love you."

"I'm not you, though."

"So you don't?" Ezra replied, feeling rejected and heartbroken.

"If I tell you my answer, I'm scared what will happen," Aria confessed.

"Scared? Aria, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm extremely sorry for everything. Forgive me?"

Aria warned, "Ezra…"

"Please. Please, forgive me."

"I forgive you, I guess, but not as much as you want me to, I'm sure. Just enough for you not to feel guilty."

"Aria, there will never be a time where I don't feel guilty about what I did to you and everyone else…. But, do you still love me? Even a little?"

"I love you and I fucking hate you. I hate you because I love you. I hate myself! I need to just move on but I can't, Ezra, I can't. I love you, okay? Are you happy?"

Ezra stared her down until Aria looked away. "Would it be wrong if I kissed you?"

"Extremely wrong."

"May I?"

Aria closed her eyes and drooped her head. "Ezra – "

Ezra didn't listen, though, and leaned in to kiss her. When their lips touched, it felt like those five years all disappeared. Aria, against her better judgment, leaned in as well.

The two pulled away from each other and Aria smirked. "I can't believe I did that."

"Honestly, I can't believe you did either," Ezra smiled. He stopped, however and got serious. "I love you, Aria."

"I… I love you, too," Aria confessed. She sighed and put her hand on his knee. "Do you want to stay for dinner? I got eggrolls."

"Do you want me to stay?"

"Actually…" Aria started. Ezra bit his lip, expecting a negative answer. "I think I do,"

"Then, I'll take an eggroll."

"Okay," she grinned, grabbing another plate from the cabinet. "Put a movie on. The remote is in that drawer." She hadn't seen a movie in a while, but it felt right to watch a movie with him while eating eggrolls. And besides, they could focus on the movie instead of awkwardly chat. She could picture it now.

_Oh, Ezra, how's your parole officer?_

_Oh, he's fine Aria. How are your hating ex-boyfriends fuelled paintings selling?_

Yeah. No way.

Aria brought over utensils, plates, and the food to the coffee table and sat down, keeping a safe distance from Ezra, but still sat nearby.

Despite all the lies and bad blood between them, it felt nice to just sit and eat together. It was astounding how easy it was for them to fall back into bad habits and start loving each other again. They both figured that when people like them fall in love, they'd always be important to each other and care about one another. They guessed when you have a connection with someone, it doesn't just wither away.

It stays there, despite anything that happens.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

As Ezra and Aria sat on her couch watching some Hitchcock movie, Aria's mind raced. She knew she had just asked him a bunch of questions, but she had so many more. She regretted kissing him and admitting her love for him with each passing second. She couldn't – shouldn't – give in that easily. Not after all that's happened.

_Aria felt her heart pulsating inside of her chest. Her brain was running a mile a minute. No, she had to be wrong. She had to be dreaming. Aria shut her eyes tight, then opened them once again. No, this wasn't a dream. This was a nightmare. A real life, true nightmare._

_She felt her mouth go dry and stood shock still. She turned her head from side to side, taking in the substantial amount of pictures. Pictures of Alison, all her friends, her family members, and herself. She looked at the board once more. It was everyone she knew, plus some others._

_She took a deep breath and slowly crept out of the basement. Aria was in the cabin, Ezra's cabin, and the power had gone out. As she felt around for flashlights, she felt a handle on the floorboard. Figuring it was the door to the basement, she opened it and crawled down. She found a lot more than flashlights._

_When she stepped out, she slammed the door back to the ground. Part of her was thinking about how sick it was for A to come in and invade Ezra's cabin, their new, special place, but Aria knew what this meant. A didn't have to invade if A had a key._

_That damn diary. The girls, mainly Hanna and Spencer, had been ranting and raving over a diary of Alison's. The two started suspecting Ezra after reading an entry. At first, Emily said they were unreasonable, but slowly started coming around. Finally, they all went to Aria with evidence. Aria read the diary pages, and tried to deny it as much as possible._

_But now, the diary pages were catching up to her. They became very realistic and truthful and scared the crap out of Aria. This was really happening. He was really the bad guy._

_Staring down at the floorboards, she suddenly realized that she was not alone. Her head snapped up and her breathing became unstable. Ezra stood a few feet away, taking in the scene. He quickly put together what she had found as Aria spun around, trying to plan an escape. She never thought she'd try to escape from Ezra – her soul mate._

_"Aria," Ezra said calmly, but was clearly worried._

_Lightning struck and illuminated the cabin briefly. Aria's tears spilled over as the lightning bolt brightened Ezra's face. His eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head and his mouth hung open. _

_Aria remembered passing a little mom and pop gas station about a mile away driving up. Now, having a tentative plan and route, she ran to the door of the cabin. To get to it, she had to pass Ezra. He turned with her and grabbed her arm. She panicked and kicked him in the shin hard. He let go and she ran out the door, snatching up her purse quickly. _

_Despite the thunder and rainstorm's roars, she could still hear Ezra calling after her. Instantly, her hair was matted to her face and she was soaked. Ezra's shouts grew closer and she looked over her shoulder. Ezra was following her now and she sobbed harder._

_"Leave me alone!" she choked out._

_Turning her head back around, she slipped into a puddle of mud. Things couldn't get much worse._

As Aria munched on her eggroll, she could still feel the icky mud all over her body. She tried hard to shake the memory away, but to no avail. That memory would never leave her and that was a fact.

She reached for the remote and paused the TV. "Can I ask you more questions?"

Ezra placed his fork down and turned to her, "Anything."

Aria felt tears prick her eyes as she tried to decide where to start. Finally, she sighed and rested her head in her hand. "Did you love Alison?"

Ezra bit his lip and looked down, giving a clear answer.

Aria whimpered and nodded, "Did you ever think of her when we kissed or hung out or anything?"

"No," he stated certainly. "Aria, I may have loved her, but I never loved her half as much as I love you."

"What's your biggest regret?"

"Hurting you," he replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Aria shook her head a little. "What else?"

"I haven't really ranked my regrets, Aria…"

As she chewed her lip, she let that sink in. He had made so many mistakes. "Did you kill anyone?"

Ezra ran his fingers through his hair and sighed.

"Wow," Aria stated before covering her face. She was sitting with a killer.

"I shouldn't tell you, no one knows, but yes."

"Ian?"

"Well, the push didn't kill him. The bullet to his head did, and that was Wren."

"So who?"

Ezra looked at her and wished she could make the connections by herself. She already asked him about the Halloween train and he already made the remark about killing the NAT members. The puzzle wasn't very hard.

"Garrett Reynolds."

Aria thought about it for a second before raising her eyebrows. "But, you said you had nothing to do with me in the box?"

"I didn't! I stashed his body in one of the – "

"Stop," Aria yelled, louder than intended. Was Ezra really talking about stashing bodies and killing people? This was too much. "I can't listen to you talk about this. I really, I can't."

"I understand," he told her, reaching for her hand. He laced his fingers with hers and felt happy for one of the first times in years. That happiness was shattered, though, when Aria pulled her hand away.

"Who'd you pin that on?" she whispered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"When Mona confessed to killing Wilden, for Hanna's mom, she told them Wilden killed Garrett. During all of our trials, Garrett was just a kind of don't ask, don't tell thing."

"You got away with so much," she murmured. "Don't you feel… don't you feel _bad_?"

"I do, but I couldn't ship myself of to prison, Aria. I wouldn't." Silence settled in again, and before it got too comfortable, Ezra broke it. "What are you the most upset about?"

Aria let out a laugh and rubbed her temples, "There's a lot of things. Number one, though, was you lying about never knowing Alison and never knowing half the people you really did know. You being with Alison also really hurts. And, because of you, I didn't… never mind, it's silly."

"What?" Ezra asked, intrigued. "I doubt it's silly."

"Because of you I never got a senior prom! Or a graduation!"

Ezra had to take a step back and recognize their age gap. She was still so young and things like that, prom and graduation, did matter. Those were memories that she could never have. _Great_, he thought, _another thing to feel guilty about. _

Ezra shrugged, "You could have stayed."

"No, I really couldn't have. I would've run into you and I would've just… no, there was no way I could have stayed."

"The other girls stayed."

"The other girls," she mocked, "weren't in love with you!" Neither of them spoke and Aria decided to continue, "What did you even say to them?"

Ezra sighed, remembering that day. The girls agreed to meet him at a restaurant, a public place, a few towns over to discuss everything. That day was one of the hardest days of Ezra's life and he hated thinking about it, but he knew, right now, he had to relive it. He had to for Aria, whether he liked it or not.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

_Ezra wrung his hands endlessly as he sat in a booth at some restaurant a few towns over. He checked his phone again, seeing if he got any new texts and to check the time. He knew they'd be here any second now. He rubbed his forehead, wishing he had just written a speech instead of winging his apology._

_As he huffed, the bell above the door chimed and three – not four – girls spotted him. As soon as he made eye contact with each one of them, he hung his head. The clack of their heels got louder and louder and Ezra wished he could take back the last three years of his life. He wished he could take back everything regarding Alison and A, but keep all things about Aria. But, right now, it was pretty clear he'd lost her forever._

_Emily, Spencer, and Hanna all squished together into one booth, none of them bold enough to sit next to Fitz. Ezra didn't know where to look and neither did the girls. The floor became very interesting to Hanna as Emily's bracelet suddenly became the most peculiar thing to ever be in her sight. Ezra twiddled with his hands some more and Spencer, finally, cleared her throat. _

_"So," Spencer started, completely at a loss of words. Here they were sitting across from A. Now, the girls, if you had told them they were going to be sitting across from A at a table a few months ago, they would've laughed and said never. Well, they definitely would have figured to be sitting across from CeCe, or Mona, or Jenna. Never in a million years would they think the A sitting before them would be the one and only Ezra Fitz._

_Hanna sensed Ezra's disappointment and spoke up, "Aria's not coming."_

_"I didn't expect her to," Ezra murmured._

_Hanna scoffed, "Yes, you did."_

_"I didn't expect any of you to, to be completely honest."_

_Spencer snorted and rolled her eyes. She couldn't even remember the last time someone was completely honest. "Well, you need to keep that honest attitude for the rest of this conversation."_

_"I will, I promise," Ezra stated. "Before we start, can I ask two things? And, say one thing."_

_"What?" Hanna asked._

_"First off, I'm sorry. I never meant for it to get out of hand like this. I never wanted it to turn into this. I should've stopped this."_

_"Why didn't you?" Emily piped up. "You were in charge."_

_"No, I wasn't actually. Before I get into that, my first question is, um, can I see each of your cell phones for a second?"_

_Spencer raised an eyebrow and cautiously held it out. He took it and unlocked it with ease. He didn't even have to think about the passcode. Spencer leaned over and saw that he went into settings and hit a few buttons and typed a few codes. Emily and Hanna handed their phones over next and he did the same thing. On Emily's though, he removed part of the case and removed a microchip._

_"What is that?" Emily asked._

_"There were settings on your phones so that it was easy to find where you were and what you were texting and stuff."_

_Emily shook her head, "What did you remove from mine?"_

_"It was a chip. Since you were the one that Alison was with the most, we put the chip on yours. Also, when you see her, pop the back off Aria's phone. There's a chip on hers."_

_Spencer nodded, "Do we have to do anything else? Like, in settings or anything?"_

_"No, I didn't need to download her location and texts. I had," Ezra cleared his throat, "easy access to her phone."_

_Emily quickly changed the topic. "Was the phone thing one of your questions?"_

_"Yeah, um, the second thing," Ezra sighed and bit his lip, "is Aria… is she okay?"_

_Spencer winced and decided to channel her tough-as-nails mother, "You don't deserve an answer for that question."_

_"I know that I don't. I know that. I just… I mean, I feel awful about what I did to you three, believe me, but I feel worse for her."_

_Emily felt sympathetic, but angry, too. "Thanks to you, she's leaving."_

_Ezra's heart stopped. "Leaving?"_

_"Yes, leaving. She got into her college's early admission program and leaves in a week."_

_Ezra swallowed the lump in his throat. After they got together again, after Jake and Malcolm and everything, they talked about how he'd leave Rosewood and follow her wherever she went. He knew where she was going, but he figured he didn't get to follow her anymore. She was gone for him._

_"Is she okay though?"_

_Spencer felt tears prick her eyes and remembered Aria's face once she picked her up at the gas station. She remembered Aria sobbing into her arms every time they hung out. As Spencer remembered these things, she had to refrain from leaping over the table and strangling Ezra until he died. He ruined Aria._

_Spencer looked him dead in the eye. "How do you think she is? You think she's grinning from ear to ear having to pack up her life? You think she enjoys thinking of her high school years? Do you?"_

_"Spencer…" Emily muttered, placing a hand on her forearm._

_"I'm sorry, but that was a stupid question."_

_Hanna decided to switch the conversation and dove in, "Is it over now? Can you make it over? Please?"_

_"Yeah, I promise. It really… it can't go any further. I'm getting cops involved. I just figured you'd want to interrogate me before them."_

_"If you're not in charge, who is?" Emily questioned._

_"Do you remember that woman at Wilden's funeral? With the veil?"_

_"How could I forget?" Hanna scoffed._

_"Well, that's who's in charge."_

_"Great," Spencer cut him off. She turned to the girls and acted like Ezra wasn't a few inches away. "Now he's gonna say he has no clue who that is and it'll be Mona and Red Coat all over again."_

_"Actually," Ezra continued, "I've known who that is since Ian died. Well, a little after Ian died. About the time you got arrested with the shovel?"_

_"Wait, that's something I want to bring up," Spencer snarked. "Aria called you in tears, crying and begging for you to come down the police station."_

_Ezra gulped and remembered how Aria's voice cracked and choked over the phone. "Yeah, what about that?"_

_"Do you feel guilty? She was there because A ruined her life and called you for help. She was there because of you. How ironic is that?"_

_"I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry," Ezra shook his head._

_"I just want you to know that I'm not okay with you. And I'm not okay with Aria's heart being smashed to bits. I'm just representing her."_

_Ezra ran his tongue over his teeth and hung his head once more. He figured Spencer would be the most upset, besides Aria._

_"Who is black veil, Ezra?" Hanna demanded._

_Ezra took a deep breath and glanced at Spencer. "It's Melissa." He grabbed his phone out of his pocket and pulled up a picture. Clear as day, it was a picture of Melissa in the black dress with the veil in her hand. _

_"She, um, she helped a little at the beginning, but then something happened and she backed out. But, when CeCe came back, so did Melissa. She always held a little bit of power over everyone so she could come back and rule, I guess, whenever she wanted or needed to."_

_"Wait, what happened?" Hanna asked. "You said something happened that made her back out."_

_Ezra sighed again and confessed, "She backed out because I went a little off the agenda."_

_"Can you be less vague?" Emily pleaded. _

_"Melissa and I both knew Ian was going to meet you at the church. He was going to kill you, Spencer, so you'd get the blame for Ali's death to make it a closed case."_

_"Oh my God" Spencer whispered, mouth dropping open. "It was you. You pushed Ian. You pushed Ian off the bell tower."_

_"Guilty," Ezra muttered._

_"Why did you save me?" Spencer whispered._

_"I was still new-ish to the game, and I wasn't ready for it veer into murder."_

_"When exactly did you start the 'game'?"_

_"Around homecoming."_

_Emily exhaled. Homecoming seemed a century ago. "Did Melissa recruit you?"_

_"Mona. Mona knew I was with Aria and that I had been…" Ezra stopped. "Mona knew I was with Aria and blackmailed me into funding everything. Then, I just got in too deep. It got out of hand and I never was brave enough to back out."_

_"What happened to honesty?" Spencer snapped. "You were going to say something, but you stopped."_

_"I figure you've already pieced it together, but I was the guy in Cape May."_

_Despite all three of them putting that together based on Ali's journal, they all gasped a little. Just hearing Ezra say he was with Alison – that he was in fact the guy who slept with her and scared her – was too much._

"Aria, I told them everything. Literally, recounted every single thing. I'll do that for you, if you want."

"I want you to go," Aria whispered. Ezra hated when she was so hot and cold like this, but he wanted to stay on her good side as much as possible. He got off the couch and Aria lead him to the door. He stepped into the hallway and Aria started to close the door without saying anything. Ezra turned quickly and caught the door with his hand. "Can I call you? Tomorrow?"

Aria was cautious about giving him her phone number, but realized he already had it. She swallowed hard and looked into his blue eyes that always made her melt. "Yeah, you can call me."

Ezra sighed with relief and said, "I will."

Aria gave Ezra a tight smile and closed the door. She leaned against it and heard his shoes clomp away and down the stairs.

Did that all actually happen? She pinched herself to find it was indeed reality and not a dreamy nightmare.

A little while later, after cleaning up dinner and pulling out her laptop, she typed in a jumble of key words into a search engine. _Rosewood A Alison DiLaurentis stalker messages crime threats murder._ Aria didn't really know what she thought she would find, but hoped for articles or news clips of everything. She remembered Ezra saying something about a press conference with Alison. Maybe she could find that.

She found a string of news articles with headlines that made her cringe. _Rosewood High School Teacher Comes Clean._ _Tortured "Missing" Girl Comes Out of Hiding. The Rosewood Anonymous Texts: The People Behind the Phone. Four Girls Stay Quiet About Vindictive Stalker._

Aria had no idea where to start. She opened a few articles that peaked her interest in a new tab. Then she searched for the press conference.

After typing "Alison DiLaurentis Press Conference," she found an oversupply of videos. Aria sighed and muttered to herself, "Here we go…"

* * *

**(A/N:) Well, there's chapter three! Hope you enjoyed it! Anyways, I REALLY need you guy to REVIEW :) reviews = motivation = updates! So please, I would very much appreciate you dear readers taking the time to leave a review!**

**Thanks!**

**-M**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Ezra sighed and continued driving to his hotel. Knowing Aria, she was probably on the phone with Spencer by now and asking a million questions. Ezra wondered if she knew anything about the trial. Ezra certainly hadn't brought it up and neither had she. His mind flipped back to that day and he shook his head. It played like a video in his head from start to finish.

_Ezra sat next to his lawyer at the small desk in the cramped courtroom. The room was packed between the girls, their family, reporters, and endless paparazzi. He took another deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew it was his idea to go to the police, but this was all just such an ordeal. He lost so much. Aria would leave his life immediately, along with his teaching career and possibly his freedom. He remembered how the girls left the diner, but Spencer had turned around._

_"Please don't go to the cops. It might make things worse and you would be ruined."_

_Ezra just nodded, unpersuaded. The storm would never end if he didn't get the police involved. He needed to put an end to this, for everyone, regardless of his reputation._

_He glanced around the courtroom, catching glimpses of journalists and the victims' parents. Their parents all sat together, a row behind the girls. Ezra scrunched his eyebrows when he didn't see Aria. He squinted harder, but she wasn't there. He knew the other girls had been called in for testifying, wouldn't she? He looked to the left to see the Montgomery's, sans Aria. Ella's eyes were red and puffy and Byron was staring straight back at him. Ezra flinched back and looked back up to the stand._

_Spencer sat cross-legged with her hands in her lap. Ezra could tell, and most of the courtroom probably could as well, she was shaking like a leaf. Her eyes constantly flipped through the room in a cycle: her hands, the lawyer questioning her, Ezra, her parents, and finally her friends._

_Ezra sat a little straighter and started paying attention to his lawyer's interrogation of Spencer. Ezra was worried that she wouldn't say enough and also worried that she'd say way too much. He was worried about all of them doing that. Ezra knew it probably wouldn't look good if people knew they all met up yesterday, so the four of them decided to keep that a secret. They decided that it would also be the last secret. _

_"Miss Hastings, how long have you been getting these anonymous threats?"_

_"A week before Alison's funeral," Spencer said back._

_"But, she wasn't really dead. She lied about that, right?"_

_Spencer stuttered, "Yes, but it's only because…"_

_"She lied about a lot, right?"_

_Spencer set her jaw and nodded, directing her vision anywhere but Alison. _

_"So how could we know for sure that what she's saying now is true?"_

_Ezra's lawyer was met with silence, so she continued to a different topic. "How long did you know Ezra Fitz before you found out he was the anonymous persona?"_

_Spencer cleared her throat and looked straight at Ezra. She didn't glare or roll her eyes, she just looked at him. "I knew him since the beginning of my junior year."_

_Ezra's lawyer slightly nodded and continued her thought with a hard thing to discuss when you're defending someone. "Now, it's been clear that he was in a relationship with one of your friends, correct?"_

_Spencer exhaled, "Correct."_

_"Did that ever let you see him in not a teacher sense," the lawyer asked. "Let me rephrase that. Had you ever talked to Mr. Fitz as a mutual friend opposed to a teacher and student?"_

_"A few times, yes."_

_"Did he ever seem a little too interested in your life or violent?"_

_Spencer sat up and quickly made a new plan. She shook her head violently. "No, never."_

_"When did you find out he was the anonymous stalker, Miss Hastings?" Ezra's lawyer asked, as if reading Spencer's thoughts._

_"I actually never did," Spencer lied. Ezra stared at her, his mouth agape. What was she doing?_

_"So you never saw him do anything or send any message?"_

_"No," Spencer replied firmly. She looked at Emily and Hanna, whose expressions matched Ezra's: confused._

_The lawyer cleared her throat. "I have no further questions."_

_XXXX_

Aria rested her chin in her hand and started the press conference coverage. The scene opened to Alison standing behind a podium and Mrs. D hovering over her shoulder. There were microphones all over the stand and Alison wore her winning, sadistic smile.

_Alison shuffled from foot to foot, loving all the attention. She smiled as she saw all the cameras and microphones before her. She tapped the mic with her index finger and coughed a little. _

_"Thank you all for being here today. I know there's a lot of explaining to do, but first I'd like to say a few things," Alison explained. Cameras snapped and snapped before Ali continued. "I have done many things that I'm not proud of, but some are for good reason. I've been in hiding for reasons I can't explain quite yet, but I will say a few things about my attacker and my attempted murder. I was still buried alive and hit from behind. The person who committed those things is still out there. The people who did those things are still out there. I'll start taking questions now."_

_"Who hurt you?!" a few reporters cried out. Alison slightly turned to her mother and Jessica slightly nodded in response._

_"It was more than one person. It was CeCe Drake, Melissa Hastings, and," Alison surveyed the crowd once more. She knew that all the reporters recognized both those names between public cases regarding Wilden, Spencer, and Ian. The last name, however, didn't ring any bells. "And Ezra Fitz."_

Aria felt her throat close up and she slammed her computer down. She covered her face and let out a whimper. She didn't know anything that had happened. She missed everything. As her mind raced, she managed to do a few before bedtime chores and crawled into bed. Pulling the blanket tighter around her small body, she cried about it all. Alison, her friends, and predominantly, Ezra.

XXXX

The next morning, Aria woke up and stared up at the ceiling. She couldn't even process last night. She heard the doorbell ring and groaned. Who was bothering her so early? If it was Ezra, Aria didn't even know if she'd open the door. She threw back her covers and went over to the door. Checking the peephole, she groaned again. It was her neighbor, Mrs. Randle.

Opening the door, Aria fake smiled and said, "Hi Mrs. Randle."

The older woman waved her off. "Please, call me Sharon."

Aria just kept smiling and silence settled in. Sharon handed her envelopes and broke the quiet awkwardness. "I grabbed your mail."

"Oh, thanks!" Aria grinned genuinely. It was always a hassle for her to go the community box.

"No problem, Aria… So who was that guy last night? He was cute."

Aria smirked at Sharon. She always thought it was funny how the senior woman was always the biggest gossip in the entire complex. Aria pulled back to the question, though, and really had no idea how to answer it. Who was Ezra, that guy, to Aria?

She must have been zoned out for too long because Mrs. Randle started chatting again. "I saw him walk out of your apartment the other night because I took my dog out for a walk."

"Oh, he's um… he's an old friend."

"Well, he seems nice. He seems older, too."

Aria pursed her lips. What was this, TMZ? "Yeah, he's older. He worked with my father."

Sharon, making her own assumptions, nodded and took a step back. "Well, I better get back inside. It's cold out here! See you later, Aria."

"Bye Sharon."

Aria sighed and stepped inside. She went through her mails and was bored instantly. Bills, junk, and one very nice envelope. Tossing the bills and junk on the counter, Aria examined the address on the fancy card. Aria's eyes widened in realization and she tore it open. _Save the Date _was in big, bold letters with Spencer Hastings and Toby Cavanaugh and a date printed in cursive underneath.

Spencer was getting married? Aria really had missed a lot. Aria grabbed her phone and before she could even start typing Spencer's digits, the phone rang in her hand. Ezra's number flashed on the screen. He was calling, like promised.

XXXX

Aria grabbed her purse and walked out of her apartment. Ezra asked her to meet him at a nearby coffee shop so they could talk some more. Aria was glad he chose a public place. After she watched Alison's press conference, Aria decided to be a lot more cautious around Ezra. He could lose it any second.

The café was nearby, so Aria decided to walk. She knew if she drove, she'd get there at least five minutes early and she didn't want to give Ezra the impression that she wanted to be there early. If anything, she wanted to be late so he could get the impression this was unimportant to her.

As she strolled past all the shops, she outlined what things she needed to ask and what she should avoid saying. Lost in thought, she hardly noticed the crowd around her. She tripped and barreled straight into the arms of a certain someone. She straightened up and grabbed her purse from the concrete before thanking her catcher.

"I'm sorry. I guess I should –" Aria stopped and her mind went blank.

"Montgomery?" the person questioned, shocked. It was none other than Noel Kahn.

As they stood in the center of a crowd, people passed and glared at the sudden stop in the traffic flow of the sidewalk. Noel gently tugged on her wrist and guided her to a people free zone and bench.

Aria's mouth was still agape as she sat down. Noel sat beside her and angled himself toward her. "How, um, how are you Noel?"

Noel smiled, "I can't complain. Recently moved down here, so I'm still adjusting."

Aria suddenly remembered everything about Noel. The way he blackmailed Ezra. The way he made her feel during that game of truth. The way he used so many girls. She suddenly became very awkward beside him. "You live here?"

"Yeah. I didn't like college that much, so I dropped out and I wanted to head west," Noel explained. He pursed his lips and looked at Aria seriously. "I thought I saw a ghost passing me on the street. No one's heard from you. We didn't know what happened."

"Who's we?"

"Well, after… everything, some of the cops talked to me so I've talked to the girls a few times here and there."

"Oh," Aria replied sullenly. She hated that she stopped talking to the girls.

"And you weren't at graduation or the trial or prom. You weren't anywhere."

"I just couldn't stay in Rosewood."

"I get it. That jerk should have gotten way worse than he did. If it weren't for – "

Aria interrupted, "Why are you being nice to me? I thought you hated me."

Noel's eyes were downcast. "I did, but that was years ago. I was stupid in high school. I shouldn't have been like that to you. And honestly, I feel bad. I feel really awful about what Ezra did to you. All of you. I could've stopped it when it almost began, but I didn't."

"What are you talking about? How could you have stopped it?" Aria asked quite confused.

"Aria, I knew that he was… I knew that Ezra was the person hurting you and your friends."

Aria was bewildered. "What? How?"

"I saw him. At Mona's birthday party, I saw him behind the wheel of the car that hit Hanna. I was gonna tell you, but then I decided to blackmail him for good grades."

"Since Mona's birthday party?!"

"Yeah… I could have stopped it. Sorry I didn't."

"Mona's party," Aria whispered to herself.

Noel was silent and then pulled something out of his wallet. "Hey, here's my phone number. Seeing that we're both here, we should get together sometime."

Aria took the paper, not really paying attention she smiled before standing up with him. Noel patted her arm before disappearing back into the sea of comers and goers.

Mona's party was so long ago. It was before Mona revealed herself. It was before the shovel incident. It was before Ian was pushed off the bell tower. It was before Ian even got married to Melissa! He had been A that long?!

Aria was furious, but still headed to the coffee house. Aria knew that she knew very little of Ezra's doings, but it turned out she knew even less than she thought. She only knew everything he told her last night, he was in charge of the lairs and its equipment, but nothing else.

* * *

**(A/N:) There's chapter four! What do you think Aria will say to Ezra? Sound off in the reviews!**

**Regarding reviews, please please please take the time to write one! It motivates me more and gets you guys more updates! So it would mean a lot to me :) I'll make a deal. No updates until I get at least fifteen reviews, kapeesh?"**

**Love all of you and enjoy the rest of your Friday!**

**-M**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

Ezra dumped some more sugar in his coffee and glanced at his watch. She was three minutes late. He finally sighed and decided only to wait for a few more minutes. She probably wouldn't come.

As he stood up to throw away the empty packet of sugar, he heard the door swing open in a whoosh. He looked up from the trash bin and saw a very angry Aria storming through the café. When she was about three feet away from him, she stopped and glared at him. If looks could kill, he'd be six feet under.

"Since Mona's birthday party?" Aria asked, cool and collected. When Ezra was silent for a few seconds, she repeated herself, but this time it was a statement- not a question. "Since Mona's birthday party!"

Ezra could tell that the people around the coffee house were eavesdropping, but hid it. He appreciated that. Ezra walked forward and reached for her fore arm, "Aria, please calm down."

"Don't touch me!" Aria shouted. Now people were blatantly staring at the two ex-lovers, not hiding it one bit.

"Aria…"

Aria wrenched her arm away and her breathing went heavy. Not panic attack heavy, though. Pure hatred heavy. "When exactly did all this start, Ezra?"

"If we could just sit down and talk…" Ezra pleaded.

"No," Aria yelled stubbornly.

"Please stop screaming."

Aria scoffed and crossed her arms. "What? You gonna hit me? Push me down to the ground?" A few members of the "audience" gasped. Ezra lowered his brow. That was a low blow.

He looked at her warningly and begged, "Aria, could you not?"

She ignored him and started shaking her head again. "Mona's birthday party? So while you let me shove my tongue down your throat in your car that night you were already apart of the team?"

A barista ran from the counter and walked in between Aria and Ezra. "Could you please excuse yourself from the café?"

Ezra pinched the bridge of his nose and Aria smiled a sick, twisted grin. "Don't worry," she started. She pushed her purse higher onto her arm and stared at Ezra. "I'm gone."

And with that, Aria stomped out of the shop like she was in the military. Ezra quickly apologized to the people sipping coffee and the workers. He threw a five dollar bill on top of his table and followed after Aria.

"Aria!" He shouted. "Please, Aria!"

He caught her profile glancing behind her before she turned and walked away. Ezra started running toward where she was and got beside her quickly.

"Leave me alone," she ordered.

Ezra could tell that she was crying and his heart broke a little more. "Aria, we can talk through this."

Aria wiped away a few tears and let out a whimper. Her cries started getting louder and louder and Ezra just couldn't bear it anymore. He tugged on her arm and embraced her. Ezra knew it was risky, but was beyond happy when she didn't immediately pull away or stomp on his foot. After a few seconds of her being stiff, she finally wrapped her arms around his waist and sobbed into his chest. Ezra rubbed her back and kissed her on the top of her head.

"You're unbelievable," she choked out. Ezra just held her tighter and felt tears prick in his own eyes. He never wanted her to know just how long he was involved. It would taint all the memories they had made since his start of the A Team.

After more tears, Aria finally pulled away and exhaled slowly. She noticed Ezra's shirt that was now mascara stained beyond repair. She chuckled softly and looked up at him. "Sorry about your shirt."

"Aria, it's fine," Ezra grinned.

Both of their smiles faded and Aria said, "We need to talk. There's a lot more things we need to discuss."

"I know." Ezra almost brought up that that was why they were meeting for coffee, but chose not to. He never wanted to bring up that caffeine outing again. "My hotel is right over there," Ezra added, pointing diagonally across the street. "There's a restaurant downstairs if you're hungry or don't want to be alone."

"I actually think I want to be alone with you. That way if I freak out, I won't have a hundred eyes on me."

XXXX

Aria sat uncomfortably on the hotel room couch as Ezra grabbed a water bottle from the mini fridge. Aria readjusted and moved on the pillows. Doing so, something caught her eye that was wedged between the cushions. Right when she reached for it, Ezra made his way toward her.

She held up the packet of cigarettes she had just found and looked at him in disbelief. "Ezra?"

"Oh…That's where they are…"

Her perfect eyebrows shot up. "You smoke now?"

Ezra nodded. "I kinda drink a lot more, too."

"Well, you always drank scotch and stuff. The first time I met you, you had whiskey in hand."

"It's more than casual drinking, Aria."

"Why? That's not you." Aria fiddled with the pack of cigarettes in her hand. "These aren't either." Ezra was silent and her face fell. Aria murmured, "But I guess I don't really know who you are after all."

Aria didn't mean that in a snarky or sarcastic way. It was the truth. She didn't know who Ezra was. She thought she did, but she really didn't.

After a pregnant pause, Ezra sat down and held her hand. Gazing into her eyes, he whispered. "I love you."

Aria swallowed hard, feeling herself going head over heels. She was about to say it back and lean into his familiar lips, but shot up off the couch instead. "Not yet," she muttered. "I'm still in shock that you were A when Mona had her party. Ezra, when exactly did you start?" Aria asked clearer, tears pricking her eyes. She was somewhat glad, however, that they were having this conversation here and now. She may still be young, but if they had had this conversation right when she found out he was A, her teenage self would have gone completely nuts and overreacted at every little detail he spilled.

_Aria let out a sob after she hung up the phone. She was standing toward the back of the little mom and pop station not too far from Ezra's cabin. She had just called Spencer in tears, begging her to pick her up. Spencer agreed instantly and said she was already on her way. Aria was happy to find that Ezra had let her go. She didn't want to talk with him, let alone fight with him. She didn't have that energy. She didn't want to look at his face._

_She just cried harder and elicited a stare from the middle aged woman working the counter. "Um, are you okay miss?"_

_Aria gulped and realized she was drenched in mud. She wiped her cheeks and looked at the curious woman. "Do you have a bathroom?"_

_"In the back. Sweetheart, do you need a towel? We have a few in the storage closet."_

_Aria smiled and nodded through her tears. The woman quickly leapt off the stool she was on and set the magazine she was reading down. The woman darted off to get the towel while Aria glanced at her phone again. She had called Spencer four minutes ago and it was about a forty minute drive. Great._

_Aria heard the closet door close and walked toward the cashier. She handed Aria the towel and pointed to the bathroom. "First door on the right."_

_"Thanks."_

_Aria stood in that disgusting little bathroom for more than thirty minutes before her phone rang. It was Spencer. "Hey, Ar. I think I'm here."_

_Aria hung up the phone, not wanting Spencer to hear her tearful voice. She walked out of the dimly lit bathroom and set the towel which smelled like wet dog down by the now empty register. Aria almost laughed when she thought that though. The wet dog smell was probably – no, definitely – from her. She wasn't sure where the helpful employee went, but Aria was almost happy that she wasn't here to question her._

_She spied Spencer's car outside and ran to it, trying to avoid the rain. She slipped on the step though, and slipped into yet another mud puddle. She heard Spencer yelp and open her car door. Spencer came around the front of the vehicle. Spencer ran – carefully – toward her friend and bent down to pick her up. _

_Aria just couldn't take it, though. She just stayed still in the mud like a pig. She breathed heavily and wept. Spencer, astonished at everything going on, knelt down and held the smaller girl like her life depended on it – not even caring that her $125 dollar J. Crew jeans were now caked with mud._

_Finally, Aria let go of Spencer and sat up. Spencer got two beach towels from the trunk of her car and laid them on the front seats, not wanting mud on her nice, leather interior. Aria, after the towel laying, got into the front seat as Spencer did the same. Spencer turned the key and the engine started up. Spencer quickly turned the heater up all the way. She pulled out of the gas station and headed back to town, both girls lost in thought._

_After nineteen minutes of silence, Spencer pulled into a deserted lot. She stopped the car and turned in her seat. Aria noticed none of this and was still staring out the window. _

_"Aria, I need you to tell me what happened. Don't make an excuse for Ezra or not say anything at all. Just, please, tell me what happened."_

_Aria gulped and angled herself toward Spencer. "You were right. All three of you were. It's him."_

_"Are you saying that he… that Ezra's A?"_

_Aria pursed her lips and felt tears sting her eyes. She shook her head up and down, holding her cries in. Spencer exhaled and reached for Aria. When she hugged her, Aria let it all out and sobbed into her best friend's shoulder. "It's him. It's him," Aria repeatedly choked out. Spencer gritted her teeth. She'd kill that bastard herself. _

Aria was pulled out of her memories remembrance when she heard Ezra's voice. "Since that text. The A, B, and C one. Like I said, Mona blackmailed me into it, and I was too much of a coward to ever back out."

Aria asked another question, hoping against all hopes that the answer would satisfy her. "So when we met at that bar, was that genuine? You weren't supposed to get close to me for A team business? You didn't know me from Alison or anything?"

"No. When we met, all I knew was that you were well-traveled, smart, and had a good taste in music."

"How'd you know that?" Aria asked worried.

"You told me… when we first talked."

"Oh," Aria smiled. "Right." She was beyond joyful that at least one of their memories wasn't tainted. A million memories ran through her head and she wanted to ask about more. "You were my first time," Aria whispered in disbelief. She had thought this thought many times, but now that Ezra was right before her, it felt surreal.

"That was definitely genuine, Aria. That was one of the best nights I'd ever had."

"Did you ever think of her while we were having sex?" Aria interrogated. Ezra was silent, so she added. "By her, I mean Ali. I know you were… _intimat_e with her in Cape May."

"There was no comparison," Ezra smirked. Aria blushed and questioned him further. She sat next to him and asked, "How did Spencer take it? You said you met with the girls after everything."

He didn't want to get into a conversation about Spencer right now. Not many people knew that Spencer was the actual reason he got away with so much. For some reason, he didn't want Aria to know about that. "She was mad, to say the least. She was definitely the angriest of the girls. Emily was almost sympathetic, Hanna was just kind of inquisitive, but Spencer… she reminded me of her mother."

Aria grinned thinking of a Veronica/Spencer parallel. She also grinned that Spencer represented her. "She picked me up after I found out about you. That's why she was so furious, I think."

"Because she had to pick you up? Ezra replied, confused.

"When she picked me up I was a mess. I had fallen in mud in the woods and I was crying and… I shouldn't be telling you this."

"I really think we need to just say everything we're thinking. Like, okay," Ezra swallowed hard before readjusting on the couch to face Aria better. "You were uncomfortable admitting what you were like after you figured it out. I'll… admit something."

"Okay…" Aria said cautiously.

"I wanted you, not Spencer. Mona, when she revealed herself, the deal was for Spencer to come on to the team. I didn't want Spencer, though, I wanted it to be you."

Aria joked, "What, so I could torture my friends? Wanted to be Bonnie and Clyde?" Ezra looked down sheepishly and Aria continued, "Did all of you, like, meet up and vote on which one of us to pull in?"

Ezra looked up at her and Aria scoffed, "Oh my god…" She laughed at the thought of Wren, Melissa, Ezra, Mona, and CeCe all sitting around trying to decide which one of her friends could torture the others the best. It all just seemed so silly now.

After a few more confessions, some were dramatic, like when Ezra explained how bruised CeCe was after her fight and fall with Aria in the sawmill, some were embarrassing, like how Ezra admitted he watched Aria a little too closely on the security cameras, and some were sad like how Aria missed him after she left.

Both of them were surprised how easy it had gotten for the two of them to talk and confess things. Maybe this could work after all.

Aria could tell he was thinking about kissing her so she leaned into him and gave him a quick peck. Aria then pulled away and Ezra just smiled ear to ear. His smile soon stopped, though, and he wrapped his arms around her. "Aria, I really am sorry, but this could work."

"I know it could."

Ezra suddenly realized how right this felt: Aria in his arms, love in their minds. His eyes locked with hers and he pulled away from their embrace slightly. "Marry me?"

Aria ripped away from him. "_What_ did you just say?!"

"I, uh, I wasn't thinking," Ezra stammered. "Aria, I, Oh my god…"

Aria put her finger to his lips. "Shh."

"Are you saying yes?" he muttered against her index finger.

"No," she replied incredulously. "I know you didn't mean that…Baby steps, okay Ezra?"

"Alright," he agreed.

His phone rang and he pulled it out of his pocket. It was a bunch of numbers with a Pennsylvania area code. He figured it was his parole officer. "Uh, I gotta take this…"

Aria suddenly felt her throat close up. What if it was Mona or someone on the phone and all this was a joke? "A 2.0, the Adult Years"? Ezra sensed her worry and explained. "It's my, um, parole officer…"

"Oh," she sighed with awkward relief. He stepped out into the hall and hit answer. "Hello?"

He was met with silence.

"Hello?"

More silence.

"Is someone there?"

There was more silence. Ezra almost hung up but he heard an ear-shattering pop on the other line before getting the dial tone. Was that a _gunshot_?

Right after the noise, the other line hung up. Ezra's message inbox then beeped. As he read his new text, his heart sunk and his jaw hit the floor.

_I wouldn't want your sweet, little romance rekindling to end, but I also wouldn't want dear Aria on the other side of that gun! Don't say I didn't warn you, Fitz. Get back to Pennsylvania now. While you still can._

_XO, A_

Ezra felt like a fish out of water. Another A? Hadn't this ended!? And A was threatening Aria with a gun? He felt sick. He walked back into his hotel room and tried to collect himself. "Um, Aria, I'm really sorry but I have to get back to Pennsylvania by Wednesday, so I better get packing and stuff now."

"Why do you have to go back?"

"I have a meeting with my parole officer," He lied expertly despite hating having to lie to her. "I can't miss it."

"Oh," Aria said sadly. "Well, I can help you pack. Do you need a ride to the airport? I can drive you tomorrow, if you'd like."

"No, that's fine. I can pack by myself," he smiled.

Aria huffed, "At least let me drive you tomorrow."

Ezra cocked his head and decided to give in. What, would this A put a bomb on the plane for Aria giving him a ride? Doubtful. "Sure, but only if I can walk you home right now."

Aria smiled, "Deal." Little did she know that Ezra was just worried that she'd get killed walking the distance from the hotel to her apartment.

* * *

**(A/N:) I hope you enjoyed this chapter! So now there's a new A targeting EZRA. Karma sucks, huh? Anyways. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE leave a review! Reviews = Motivation = Updates! And if you are kind enough to leave a review, GIVE ME YOUR PREDICTIONS. I want to see if any of you lovely readers can put together who New A is!**

**Also, who's excited for tomorrow's new episode? Personally, I've never been so UN-excited for an episode. Thanks to the hashtag, #AriavsEzra (which scares me that when they talk, he'll justify his behavior) and RILEY. If any of you read spoilers, you know what goes down between Aria and Riley and... wait... yep, just mentally puked at the thought. BOO.**

**Alright so please review guys! Get me to twenty and I'll update after tomorrow's PLL!**

**-M**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

"Now boarding the 2:15 flight to Philadelphia," recited a robotic voice over an intercom. Aria felt tears prick her eyes and quickly blinked them away. She knew Ezra was toxic to her, but he was familiar and she had so easily fallen for him once more. Seeing him board a plane that would take him away from her shattered her already broken heart. Ezra sighed beside her and stood up from the uncomfortable airport chairs. Aria, refusing to let her see her red eyes, stared at his suitcase.

"Are you going to walk me to the gate?" Ezra asked, staring down at her scalp. Aria stayed silent. Ezra bit his lip and crouched down in front of her and held her face in his hand. Looking at her, now eye level, he started, "I'm sorry I have to leave, but you know that I can't – "

"I know you have to leave, but I just got you back. I don't want you out of my life again," Aria explained, letting her tears fall.

Ezra felt his own eyes dampen as he watched her. The A text he had gotten was fresh in her mind and he had to protect her. He wasn't going to let his feelings get her killed. He couldn't. He also was upset because he knew, until he figured out who this new A was, that he wouldn't talk to Aria. If he were to stay in touch, their feelings would only get stronger and he couldn't let that happen.

Aria stood up and so did Ezra. She grabbed his hand and said, "I'm not walking you to the gate. I'll get too upset."

"I understand," Ezra nodded.

She couldn't believe how badly she could fall head over heels for him. In a few days, she loved him as much as she did when she was seventeen. Aria let out a whimper and looked into Ezra's eyes. The eyes that she loved so much. "Keep in touch, okay?"

Ezra plastered on a smile and unclutched his suitcase handle. He pulled her into his strong arms and hugged her tighter than ever before. Tighter than after their first time at the Masquerade Ball. Tighter than when she ran into his arms on his last day at Rosewood High. Maybe even tighter than when he hugged her on the Halloween Train, not believing she was still alive and Wilden hadn't succeeded in killing his girl.

He felt her tears soak through his button down. He kissed her scalp on pulled away. "Is it time yet?"

Wiping her cheeks, Aria asked, "Time for what?"

"For me to say 'I love you.' Because I do, Aria. I love you so much."

Aria smiled up at her soul mate, "I love you too. So, so much." She went in for another hug and Ezra let her. Ezra sighed, "Aria, again, I'm sorry for everything."

"I know," she murmured against his chest."

"Last call for the 2:15 flight to Philadelphia," a flight attendant called out. Aria glanced at her watch. It was 2:13 pm.

Ezra pulled away. "I guess I better get going." As Aria nodded, Ezra grabbed his suitcase. He started walking toward the gate when Aria pulled his arm like he had done to her at Ali's funeral and Emily's swim meet.

"You aren't gonna kiss me?" Aria half joked. Ezra chuckled and pressed his lips to hers. Aria pressed her hands to each of Ezra's cheeks and wished that the moment could last forever and ever. It couldn't though and that became crystal clear when a flight attendant came to the chair section reminding them about the Philadelphia flight.

Ezra backed away and whispered, "I guess it's time for me to go." Aria smiled sadly and backed away. Ezra continued to the gate and handed his ticket to the lady by the gate. He was about to board when he heard Aria's soft voice exclaim, "I love you!"

Ezra turned and felt a tear drip down his face. "I love you, too," He exclaimed back. Before another thing could be said, he was ushered through the tunnel connecting the airport and the plane. He felt like the tunnel was never ending, but finally he saw the door to the plane. He got on and found his seat.

After his suitcase was up in the overhead compartments he sat down in his assigned chair – a window seat – and glanced out the window. He could see inside the airport and spotted Aria staring out the airport window. When he realized she saw him back, she waved and smiled. Ezra did the same, but then was distracted when he heard the captain's voice.

"Good afternoon passengers. Please make sure your seat belt is buckled. We are taking off in three, two, one…"

And like that, the plane was drifting off the runway. When he glanced back at where Aria was standing, he could see that her hand was placed over her eyes and that she was crying. _Fucking A_, he thought.

A few minutes into the flight, he pulled out his phone and thanked God that he could now use his phone while on a plane. He quickly composed a quick text to Emily, Spencer, and Hanna.

_Hey girls, something just happened to me, and I wondered if it happened to you. – Ezra_

XXXX

Spencer, Hanna, and Emily all sat around Spencer's new loft. They were all conversing about Spencer's wedding and planning what her wedding dress should look like. It was a normal girl's day, but then all their hearts sank: Emily's phone beeped, followed by a ping noise from Hanna's, and then a bloop from Spencer's. Whenever their phones went off in unison, it was not a good thing.

Spencer, being the boldest, opened her new text message. "It's Ezra," Spencer stated.

Emily and Hanna both creased their eyebrows and opened the message.

"'_Something just happened to me, and I wondered if it happened to you.' _What the hell does that mean?" Hanna asked.

"Why is he texting us?" Emily wondered.

"Let me call him," Spencer said, tapping buttons on her phone. After she heard the first ring, she put it on speaker. After more rings, the ringing stopped.

"Hello? Spencer?" Ezra asked from the other line.

"Yeah, it's me. Hanna and Emily are here, too. You're on speaker."

Ezra stuttered, not sure how to begin, "You know I wouldn't normally bother you, but last night, um,"

"Just spit it out," Hanna ordered.

"I got an A text yesterday." He could practically hear all the girls' hearts stop beating. "Hello?"

"Uh, yeah, we're here," Spencer muttered.

"Did any of you get an A text?"

Emily glanced at Hanna and Spencer, who were both shaking their heads. "No, we didn't."

Spencer turned to her friends, "Should I call Aria? See if she got one?"

Ezra interrupted, "Spencer, she didn't. I was with her."

Spencer stood up straighter. "What do you mean _with her_?"

"I, uh, I went to see her in California a few days ago. I'm on a plane back to Philly right now."

"You _what?_" Spencer practically screamed. Did he honestly think it was okay to go see her? Where did he get the nerve?

"I know it was risky, but I just had to see her. Talk to her. I explained a lot of stuff to her. She said you guys didn't tell her anything."

"She didn't want us to," Hanna explained.

Spencer gulped. "Ezra, did you tell her that I – "

"No. I figured you would."

Spencer pinched the bridge of her nose. Emily, sensing the tension, questioned Ezra. "What did the text say?"

Ezra took a deep breath. "Well, first I got a call and it was silent but then there was a really loud gunshot on the other line and then it hung up. After, I got a text basically saying if I didn't stop talking to Aria, she'd be on the other side of the gun. It also said I needed to head back home, so now I'm on a plane."

"Did you tell Aria?"

"No. I just told her I had to leave because I had a meeting with my parole officer," Ezra replied.

"Okay, good. We can't let her know. Not until it's safer," Spencer explained.

"I know. I was thinking we could all meet up once I got back in town and plan what to do."

Hanna readjusted in her seat and interrogated him more. "This isn't just you being A and trying to kill us or anything, right?"

"Guys, I swear, this has nothing to do with me. By the way, I'd never hurt Aria," Ezra reassured. After a slight pause, he sadly added, "I never tried to in the first place."

The girls let that soak in and they all knew he was speaking the truth.

"Okay, tomorrow," Spencer decided. "Where?"

"I don't know yet. I'll call you later and tell you."

"Alright. Have a safe flight," Emily said quickly before hanging up.

Emily looked between her two best friends and started breathing heavily. It had started up again.

**(A/N:) Get ready for Spencer, Hanna, and Emily to come into play! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! And I also hope you enjoyed tonight's episode. I thought it was good, but the rest of 4B has been way better in my opinion. I also really REALLY didn't appreciate Riley. Just…no. Also, if you felt like the Ezria scene was unsatisfactory (Um, I never heard him say sorry) check it out my most recent one shot, **_**Goodbye, Ezra. **_

**I'll post chapter seven tomorrow, but only if you amazing readers get me five reviews! Five is all I ask **


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

The next day, Ezra was already back and plotting. Operation: Take Down the New A. He was A for a long time and he had never, ever been caught. Until Aria went in his basement, anyway. Point was, they figured Mona out. They figured Toby out. They figured CeCe out. He had never been figured out. He knew how to play this game and he was beyond prepared to start it up again in order to protect Aria.

Wren, Melissa, Mona, and CeCe never knew about his cabin. Aria, and probably the girls, were the only ones. That basement, that previously held surveillance equipment and pictures of the Liars, was sound proof. He knew, despite not going back there since Aria found out about his double life, that the cops had confiscated a lot of that stuff, but he also knew that there were stashes of burner phones, high tech binoculars, and microchips in the floorboards. No way had cops found those things. He decided to go ahead and go to the cabin and tell the girls to meet him there.

XXXX

Emily and Hanna had spent the night at Spencer's. They had waited and waited for Ezra to call them, but he never did. Hanna was worried he was up to his old ways, Emily thought he was being truthful, while Spencer didn't know what to think.

Each girl was awaken, however, when Spencer's phone started ringing loudly. It was a number titled "Unknown."

Hanna peered at the caller ID and her breath hitched in her throat. "Should we answer it?"

"What if it's A?" Emily asked.

Spencer picked her phone up. Before pressing answer, she stated simply, "You can't win the game if you don't know the directions."

"Hey, it's Ezra," Ezra explained whilst sitting in his cabin's basement.

"Why is your number unknown?"

"I'm calling from a burner phone. If A is as dangerous as it was back when you were in high school, my phone was chipped. Listen, you need to each come to my cabin."

Spencer interrupted, "Isn't that where…"

"Yes," Ezra cut her off, "but none of the old A's know about it and it has a soundproof basement. It's the safest place we could meet."

"Fine, how do we get there?"

"That's another thing. All of you have to go separately in case this A is following you. To throw them off."

Spencer cleared her throat, "Yeah, we get it."

"Alright, the address is 206 Rock Prairie Road. Spencer take the freeway. Emily, don't take the freeway. Hanna, just do either but take random turns and stuff. Don't follow what Emily or Spencer do. Okay?"

"Alright, we'll be there soon."

XXXX

Spencer pulled up first, partially because freeways went faster, but mainly because she had driven the route before. Pulling into the Rock Prairie Neighborhood, she spotted the infamous gas station immediately. Figuring that Hanna and Emily were still on their way to the cabin, Spencer stopped to fill up her tank. As she leaned against her car, she watched the front of the store and where the mud puddle had been that Aria slipped in. Spencer felt hear eyes fill with salty tears and Spencer reluctantly let them fall. Her heart broke all over again for Aria. She remembered everything about that day. She hated Ezra ever since, but knew she had to work with him to stop the new A. He was the best ally they had to do it. She also hated herself, though, for letting him off the hook in court. She just couldn't see him be put away in prison. She knew that no matter how mad Aria was at him for everything, that she wouldn't have wanted to see that happen to Mr. Fitz either.

And for some reason, Ezra was the most reliable A. He lied to them the most out of all of them, but he was the only one who took the courage to go the girls, tell them everything they needed to know, and beg for forgiveness. Spencer only wished she could have seen Aria's face when he showed up in California. She figured he acted the same way he had in the diner. Probably a little more remorseful, though. Spencer felt a little bad about how mean she was to him in the diner, but on the other hand, she didn't care. He didn't see how awful Aria was after he was revealed.

_Spencer pulled into her driveway and was grateful that her parents were once more out of town. Aria begged Spencer not to drop her off at her house. Aria didn't want her dad to listen to her cry all night long, fearing that he'd figure out Ezra was the source. No one knew they were seeing each other again – except the girls of course – and Aria didn't want Byron to ever know _anything.

_Spencer took a deep breath and lead Aria inside the house. Once inside, Aria plopped down on the couch and started sobbing. Spencer sat down the next to her and stroked her best friend's hair, holding Aria in her arms. _

"_I thought he loved me!" Aria cried._

"_Oh, sweetie," Spencer whispered, trying to stay strong. _

"_Why? Why?" Aria repeatedly screamed into Spencer's shoulder. _

"_If only I knew, Aria," Spencer murmured. "If only I knew…"_

Spencer snapped out of her thoughts when she saw Emily's Toyota zoom by. Spencer pulled the gas pump out of her car and headed back to the driver's seat, shaking away all thoughts of Aria's broken heart.

XXXX

Ezra ushered Spencer and Emily into the house. He immediately noticed Spencer's puckered expression and harsh demeanor. "Uh, Emily, the door to the basement is over there. I need to talk to Spencer for a second."

Emily instantly guessed that it was about how Spencer had kind of been here before for Aria. Her guess was right. Emily decided to give them privacy, though, and headed downstairs.

Once the door had closed on top of Emily, Ezra started talking.

"Spencer, I know we haven't really talked since the trial, but I'd just like to say some things to you. First, I know that you know this is where Aria found out about me being A, and I'm so sorry I was ever involved. I know how upset she was when she found out."

"Really? You see her when she was covered in mud and crying in my arms?"

"Yeah, actually. I watched from the woods. I had followed her out of the cabin."

Spencer's mouth formed an "O" and Ezra continued. "All that is behind me. I love Aria, okay? She forgave me while I was up in California. I love her so much and I just want to be with her. I want to push pass this new A, and I just want to be with Aria. She and I, I'm pretty sure anyway, both want to be together for the long run, and it can't happen with this A around. So, I need your help Spence. You're the smart one and between the four of us, we can figure it out. I can't do it without you, though."

Spencer only nodded and replied. "I understand. And I understand you love her, but I hope _you_ understand I'm not gonna back this relationship until I'm sure you're completely good and never, _ever_ going to hurt her again. I'm surprise she fell for you so easily."

Ezra laughed, "Me too, Spencer… Me too."

"Was that all you wanted to say?"

Ezra glanced down at his feet, "No. I never got to really thank you correctly, but thank you for lying in court. You are the reason I'm not in prison. I really appreciate that. Thank you."

"None of us wanted to see you go to prison. CeCe, we kind of did, but not you. You might have screwed all of us, some ways more than others, but you did help all of us with college and you were Aria's shoulder to cry on for a lot of A unrelated things. You helped us more than other A's. And you stopped it. We couldn't send you away to throw on an orange jump suit. Aria didn't want that either. I could tell."

Ezra smiled and was about to thank her again, but he heard a knock at the door. It was Hanna. He let her inside and Spencer lead them to the basement door. She opened it up and said simply, "Let's take this bitch down."

* * *

**(A/N:) Wow, thanks you guys! Overnight, I went from 22 reviews to 35! Thank you so so so so much! It means a lot to me! Also, I'll spoil that Aria will be back next chapter! How is she going to react to Ezra staying away from her? And seeing everyone she left behind? **

**Also, my lovely readers, PLEASE WITH CHERRIES ON TOP, drop WHO YOU THINK NEW A IS in a review! I'd love to read your predictions!**

**I'll be updating tomorrow as long as just ONE reviewers tells me who they think it is! Just drop a name :)**

**-M**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Ezra woke up in his apartment the next day and started thinking of everything he and the girls had gone over. They all agreed to not tell Aria and alert each other through a code word in case anyone got an A text using the phrase "Wedding planning is a bitch."

But, days without any new alerts turned into weeks. Ezra started getting more nervous. What if A had already killed Aria and none of them knew because A had kept it a super-secret? What if they didn't know because it remained a local news story and didn't branch out into Rosewood and Philadelphia? What if Aria was still alive but A was planning something huge and this was the calm before the storm.

Ezra got nervous thinking of the endless possibilities and called each girl. "Wedding planning is a bitch," he told each girl before hanging up. He headed to the cabin and waited for the arrival of each girl.

An hour later, all four of them sat in chairs around the shabby, soundproof basement. Hanna was the first to speak, "Well? What did the text say?"

"I didn't get a text. I just got worried. What if Aria is already dead but the news only stayed local to where she was?"

"No way. Even if that's the case, her parents would have called at least one of us," Emily assured.

"But what if A is just planning something really big?" Ezra thought out loud.

"Ezra, calm down," Spencer ordered. It's been weeks since you got that text. It was probably just some person who got wrapped up in the case and decided to toy with you."

"No way," Ezra insisted. "That text was very specific. It knew exactly where I was and what I was doing. It was like A was in California with me, watching Aria and I." The girls knew this was true and that the text had been specific.

"Well, Aria's safe in San Francisco," Emily told Ezra quickly.

A phone rang out and each girl jumped, as did Ezra. He realized it was his phone and pulled it out of his pocket. Before looking down at the screen, Spencer scolded him. "You brought your phone down here? I thought you said we couldn't in case there was a microchip!"

"I checked all the settings and the inside. It's fine. Trust me."

_Trust me_ was quite a whopper of a thing for him to say to those three girls, but they all just shrugged. Ezra, once each girl stopped thinking the phone chip thing over, looked down at the caller ID.

"Speak of the devil," Ezra muttered.

"A?" Hanna asked weakly.

The phone rang again and Ezra almost said _"I wish"_ but decided against it. He shook his head and said, "It's Aria."

"Answer it!" Spencer ordered.

"Are you kidding? If it talk to her, A will _assassinate _her!" Ezra argued.

The call went to voice mail and Ezra sighed. That must have been the twenty-ninth call from her that he didn't answer. He couldn't. He wished that she knew why he wasn't answering, but he knew he couldn't tell her.

"Ezra, talk to her. It's fine. A won't kill her over one call," Spencer confirmed. "Besides, she's um… she's upset."

"What?" Ezra asked.

"She's upset that you haven't called her at all. She's not mad, but just confused and sad."

Hanna interjected, "How do _you_ know?"

"I called her and told her to come to Rosewood. For my wedding."

"Is she coming?" Emily practically shouted, standing up from her chair.

Spencer nodded and couldn't help but smile. None of them had seen Aria in years and missed their fourth counterpart beyond belief. "Yeah, she's coming in a week. Oh, and she wants to see you."

Ezra realized Spencer was pointing at him and felt his mouth hang open. "NO. No way. A will see us together! It's too big of a risk."

"You're a risk she's willing to take. You've gotta be the same way," Hanna affirmed.

XXXX

Aria stepped off the plane and was quite woozy. She'd drank quite a few of those mini alcohol bottles on the flight. She only drank to calm her nerves and she was completely nervous to see Ezra. She knew she would go see him and was desperate for an explanation as to why he never kept in touched like he said he would.

She sobered up, though, spotting Caleb and Hanna near the baggage claiming area. Hanna squealed and rushed to her, enveloping her into a bear hug. "Aria Montgomery, I have missed you more than words can say!"

"Aww, I've missed you too, Han!" Aria pulled away and turned to Caleb. Caleb pulled her in to a small hug and asked how she was.

"I'm good. You know, it's weird being back in all, but it's better than I thought."

"Well, let's get going! Spencer and Toby's rehearsal dinner is at seven and you already seem tipsy."

"How'd you know?" Aria giggled.

"I can smell the whiskey on your breath…" Hanna laughed.

Aria raised her hands up haphazardly and grinned, "Whoops!"

XXXX

Aria, who was staying with Hanna and Caleb, quickly took a cold shower in the guest room's bathroom to sober up. It was five pm and Spencer's rehearsal dinner was hours away. It was honestly going to be Aria's nightmare, though. All of the people she ran away to California from would all be together, rejoicing over champagne. Her mother, Zack, and Mike would all be there. She doubted her Dad would be there. She hadn't seen her parents in five years, claiming that going back to her home town would be too hard on her. She had seen Mike once, though. He came to visit her a few years back. But, she hadn't talked to Ella or Byron about Ezra and A since shortly after she found out and was scared to face them again.

_It was family night in the Montgomery house which meant that Ella would be coming back. She appreciated that her parents stayed amicable post-divorce. But, this was the first family night since Aria found out about Ezra being A. Aria was still deep in her depression and had hardly came out of her room for a week. But, she knew what was coming. _

_Spencer told Aria that she needed to tell her parents about Ezra and what was going on. Spencer only wanted her to do this because Aria had explained how she could get into an early admission program and get out of Rosewood for good. That wouldn't happen though, if she couldn't explain exactly why she wanted to do that to her Mom and Dad. Aria didn't want to fess up to her and Ezra being back together and that she never spoke out about getting bullied again, so Spencer promised that she'd come over and help through her explanation._

_Aria got a text from Spencer saying that she'd be there in five and she was bringing back up support. Aria sighed and got up. She quickly through on clothes that weren't pajamas and attempted a little bit of make-up. Her makeup was diminished, however, when she started crying again. She just couldn't believe anything that had happened. _

_The doorbell rang and Aria went downstairs without any make up. Ella opened the door and looked out onto a nervous Emily, Spencer, and Hanna._

"_Girls, what are you doing here?"_

_Spencer took the liberty of answering and said, "The four of us need to talk to you and Mr. Montgomery."_

_Aria watched from the middle of the stairs and saw Byron stand up after hearing her name. Ella responded with a cautious "okay" and let the girls inside. She ushered them to the living room and they all sat together on the couch. Aria came and sat next to Hanna and Spencer. She looked at Spencer and clutched her friend's hand for dear life. She knew this was all necessary, but she was scared of what her parents would say. She could practically already hear the I-told-you-so's._

_Byron and Ella sat down at the chairs in front of the couch and told Mike to go upstairs. "Are you all okay?" Ella asked. _

_Aria's lip trembled and she felt tears pour down her cheeks._

"_Would one of you please tell us what's going on?" Byron pleaded. _

_Hanna, being the best talker, started, "I know that you both know about Mona and how we were stalked. But, she wasn't the only A. And A continued after Mona was sent to Radley."_

"_You girls never told anyone?" Ella asked in shock._

"_We couldn't. We told Dr. Sullivan and, well, you know what happened then," Emily explained weakly._

"_Did this New A do something?" Ella prompted._

"_He's not new," Aria cried, hunching over and covering her eyes._

"_He? Who is it? Do you know?" Ella asked frantically, hating to see her little girl cry._

"_It's him, isn't it? Ezra?" Byron guessed quietly. Each girl nodded and Aria sobbed harder._

"_Aria, I told you he was bad! I told you that nothing good would come out of it!" Byron told Aria rather loudly._

"_Why is it my fault?" Aria cried._

_Ella sighed and comforted, "Honey, it's not your fault. Byron's just gloating."_

"_You knew he was bad, too, Ella!"_

_Spencer cleared her throat, "This isn't the best conversation to have in front of Aria right now."_

"_Wait, why are you this upset?" Byron asked, going back to normal volume. "I thought you were through with him. Please tell me you aren't with him again."_

_Aria only wept in response, feeling more worthless than ever. Truth was, she was with him again, despite their teacher-student relationship. Truth was, they'd also slept together at least three times since they'd gotten back together. She was upset now, in addition to Ezra's betrayal, because Conner and the rest of the sophomore boys were right. She was a slut and she and Mr. Fitz were _way_ beyond scrabble buddies._

"_I'm sorry, Dad. I'm so sorry."_

XXXX

Aria walked into the Rosewood Country Club and felt a sting of memories. She hadn't been here since she was a freshman in high school. The last time she was here, she was with Alison. She hadn't seen Alison since before she found out Ezra was A. She wondered if she was here.

As if she had said her thoughts out loud, she felt someone tap her shoulder, "You're here!"

It was none other than Alison DiLaurentis. As if it wasn't hard enough for her to see her alive, it was harder now knowing that her and Ezra had been a couple. They had had sex. Multiple times. Ew. Stopping her vulgar thoughts, she pulled Ali into a hug and acted like she missed her.

"I was hoping to see you here, actually…"

Aria was curious. "Why?"

"Well, I apologized to each girl for how awful I acted before I disappeared. I never got the chance to tell you though. After Ezra, you dropped off the face of the planet!"

Aria smiled meekly and waited for this apology she was apparently going to receive.

Ali touched her shoulder, "I shouldn't have treated your dad, your whole family, the way I did. I'm sorry. I'm also sorry I never told you Ezra was the bad guy. You just seemed so happy with him. I know I had been like that with him."

"I'm not talking about this with you," Aria spat bitterly. "Sorry, but, I can't. But, thank you, for your apology."

Alison grinned and walked into the country club. Aria felt like the world was spinning. Was everyone gonna talk to her about Ezra? Alison just did, she was sure her parents would, and Caleb mentioned it briefly on the ride home from the airport.

Before she could shake off her worries, she felt another person touch her. "Aria!" Ella cried, quickly embracing her baby girl.

"Hi Mom," Aria replied into the crook of her mother's neck. She had missed her mom so much.

"I'm so happy you're here! We need to catch up!"

"Of course!"

Aria pulled out of the hug and Ella stared at her. "What?"

"I just can't believe you're back in Rosewood! I mean, after Ezra and everything I never thought you would come back. Are you okay, by the way? With being here knowing that's he's nearby?"

"Philly isn't that far, Mom."

"How'd you know he's in Philly? Have you talked to him?"

Aria decided to start something, starting now, she'd be truthful with people. "Actually, yeah. He came to California and he apologized and explained a lot."

"He came to California? How'd he know you were there? Are you okay?"

Aria sighed, "He knew because he knew I went to college there. But really, it's fine. We made up. We were very grown up about everything, and I guess we're back together."

Ella gulped and dropped her hand from Aria's arm. "Just don't tell your father any of this. He still has a grudge on that man and Byron would have a heart attack if he knew Ezra went to talk to you."

Aria only nodded and followed her mother to the country club's pavilion. It was a nice night and the stars were shining. As she walked in she felt every pair of eyes on her. The only one's she cared about, though, were Emily and Spencer. She spotted them near the fountain and ran over.

The three girls hugged and Aria congratulated Spencer on her soon to be marriage. A nagging thought kept tugging her mind though. She knew for a fact that, if Ezra was never A or if she hadn't left, Ezra and herself would've been married by now. Aria always thought that she'd be the first married out of the four friends just because she had such a solid boyfriend. But now, that dream of marriage with Ezra seemed like an impossible goal to achieve. Especially since he hadn't answered any of her twenty-nine calls.

XXXX

The wedding shower was in full swing. Aria had said hello to a few people including Melissa, Pam Fields, and, oddly enough, Mona Vanderwaal. Spencer explained that Mona and all the girls were okay now and she had never really been a main A. Just a helper.

The one thing that disturbed Aria was that Ezra had been brought up a total of eleven times. Had the memory stayed that fresh in everyone's mind? After Aria excused herself, she headed inside to go to a restroom. But, something stopped her. Right when she walked out the pavilion doors, she ran straight into someone.

"Ezra?"

Ezra audibly gulped and backed away. "Um, hi."

Aria smiled slightly, but then her expression turned hard. "Did you lose your phone?"

Ezra furrowed his brow and nodded enthusiastically. "Uh, yeah…"

As if on cue, his phone went off in his pocket. Aria realized what just happened and felt like such a fool. "Unbelievable."

Aria stormed away and Ezra knew in that moment that if he'd let her go, there was a chance he could never get her back. "Aria, wait."

"Why? So you can lie to my face some more?"

"Can we go talk somewhere? There's got to be any empty room somewhere in this club."

"Fine," Aria agreed. "You have _a lot_ of explaining to do."

"I know, I know," Ezra said. The problem was, he just didn't know _what_ to explain.

XXXX

New A watched Ezra and Aria run into each other and talk from the Pavilion. _Guess I just have to up my threats_, A thought. And A would.

* * *

**(A/N:) Oooh cliffhanger! Well, sorta… But for all of you who've guessed (and special shout out to you for giving me your insight! I loved reading those reviews! So a big thank you to bite-me-im-irish, rissywrites, guest, and zombiepiEs!) **

**So hopefully the excerpt at the end gives you more insight on who it could be! Thanks for all the reviews from everyone! I'm to forty, so woo! And just as a thanks this chapter is longer than the usual! **

**Please please please keep reviewing! Reviews = motivation = updates! Love you all!**

**-M**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Ezra pulled Aria into the country club's indoor pool. It was closed, but the door was still open. Aria kicked of her heels and sat on the ledge of the pool, dipping her legs in the deep end. She mindlessly kicked the water as Ezra sat down beside her. He kicked off his shoes as well and rolled up his pant legs. He sat beside her and intertwined his wet legs with hers.

"Aria, I can't talk to you."

"Why? Did you tell your parole officer or something? Did he think it wouldn't be smart to talk to me?"

Man, that would be the perfect lie. Ezra thought of running with that, but shook his head. No more lies. "Aria, I don't know how to tell you this, but…"

"Is there someone else?" Aria asked with worry.

"What? No!" he replied quickley. "What makes you think that?"

"I don't know! I'm just trying to think of why you'd ignore someone you supposedly love for weeks!"

Ezra rolled his eyes. "Babe, I don't 'supposedly' love you. I really, love you."

"Well, you don't act like it!" Aria cried.

"I can't," Ezra defended.

"Why?" Aria shouted.

Ezra let out a heavy breath, "Remember that call I got? When you were at my hotel?"

"Yeah… I thought you said that was your parole officer."

"I lied. I thought it was, but when I answered it, I was wrong," Ezra explained, shaking his head. He had no idea to find the words he had to say. How could he tell Aria this devastating news? "It was a new A…"

Aria was truly at her wit's end. "Are you kidding me?"

"Is that something you think I would joke about?" Ezra asked incredulously.

"No," Aria whispered. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Ezra assured, reaching for Aria's hand. "The phone call was silent but then there was a gunshot. The caller hung up and then I got a text. It said if I continued to 'rekindle our romance' you'd be on the other side of the gun. It also said I needed to go back to Rosewood. A threatened your life, Aria. I wasn't gonna let my feelings for you be your reason of death."

Aria took his hand in both of her and turned slightly. "Ezra, A threatened our life every week six years ago. That call was a month ago. I'm fine. _We're_ fine. I'll risk it….for us."

Ezra smiled weakly and sighed. "If anything happens to you, though… I don't know what I'll do."

"Nothing is gonna happen to me, Ezra," Aria assured, hoping to turn off the subject.

Ezra was about to protest some more, but Aria kissed him before he could. Ezra melted into the kiss, wishing that he hadn't ignored those twenty nine calls. Ezra went from her lips to her neck and Aria moaned with pleasure. "Ezra, I love you."

Ezra stopped his hickey-making process and looked Aria in the eyes. "I love you, too."

Aria leaned into kiss him once more, but Ezra decided to have some fun of his own. Once she was about a centimeter away from his face, he pulled the two of them into the pool. As Aria came up from the water, she splashed him and exclaimed, "You jerk!"

"You know you love me," Ezra teased. He gave her a quick peck before splashing her back. He wished they could remain carefree like this 24/7.

XXXX

A soaked Aria was about to jump into Hanna's car, when Spencer tugged her arm. "Aria, do you mind talking to me for a little bit?"

"Oh, well, I'm staying with Hanna, so I was just going to…"

"I'll give you a ride back to her house. I just need to talk to you."

Aria agreed and Spencer led her back into the Rosewood Country Club's entry hall. Spencer led her down a corridor and finally led her into a vacant office space.

"You certainly know your way around here," Aria laughed.

Spencer shrugged and sat up on a desk. "I used to always go in here with that guy Alex and make out after hours. I wonder what ever happened to him."

Aria smiled at her reference of Alex and thought back to early junior year. A hadn't been as dangerous and Ezra had just returned from New York. That seemed so long ago. In reality, though, it had been.

Silence settled between the two girls and Spencer decided to break it. "I heard that Ezra went to go see you in San Francisco…"

Aria couldn't help but smile a little. Just hearing his name could make her instantly happier. "Yeah, yeah he did. He explained a lot and gave me some much needed answers."

"You know I would've given you answers if you wanted them. You never asked. And that one time I tried to bring A up, you shut me down and demanded that I never talked about anything that had happened."

"Hearing it come out of Ezra's mouth just made everything more surreal," Aria explained.

Spencer gulped, "What…exactly did he tell you?"

Aria let out a breathy noise. "Um, a lot. He told me a little bit about all the people involved… and he told me what happened with him and Alison the night she disappeared."

"Did he talk about his," Spencer cleared her throat, "punishments, I guess…"

"He said he had a parole officer and he had to move. And the restraining order from Alison."

"That's all he said?"

Aria narrowed her eyes, "Yes. Well, he said he got away with a lot if that's what you're prying for…"

"Did he say why?" Spencer interrogated.

Aria leaned against the wall, "Good lawyers… Why is this important? Was he lying? Did he pay someone off or something?"

Aria kept blabbing out guesses of why it might be a matter Spencer was concerned about. Spencer finally held her hand up, and Aria became quiet.

"It was me," Spencer whispered. Aria cocked her head, silently questioning her best friend.

"You?"

"I lied on the stand. I made Emily and Hanna lie, too. I didn't want him to go to prison. I knew you wouldn't have either. I said that we never caught him red handed. He never confessed anything to us. We never suspected him. He was a good guy. We must have convinced the jury because he got away with it."

Aria let it sink in. It was because of Spencer? Should she be happy? Should she be upset because Spencer just assumed what Aria wanted? She felt utterly conflicted.

"Please say something Aria," Spencer begged.

"You were right. I was so mad at him, but if he had gone to prison…" Aria let out a tortured sigh. "I couldn't have lived with myself if I knew I got him sent to prison. I mean, you know he couldn't have held his own and what happens to guys like Ezra in prison. So, thanks."

"We didn't want that to happen to him. A or not, he was good to all of us. Like when Mona was secretly A, she was rude to Hanna every now and then. Ezra never hurt any of us before we found out he was bad. Big picture is, he helped us."

Aria smiled, but it didn't last long. "Why didn't he tell me this?"

"I didn't want him, too. I told him that after the trial. I didn't want you to know in case it made you mad that we let him off easily. But, don't be mad at Ezra for not telling you this."

_It had been three minutes since the judge pounded his gavel, but so much had changed already. A was officially over, CeCe was hauled off to a women's prison for the next two decades, and Ezra would be walking the streets._

_Spencer watched alongside the girls as Ezra shook hands with his lawyer. She could tell that the conversation was over and Ezra walked away. Spencer excused herself from her friends and her friends' families and ran after her former mutual friend._

"_Ezra! Ezra, wait!"_

_The suit clad boy turned around cautiously. He nodded and simply said her name._

"_I'm sorry I changed everything, but look at you. Ezra, you were not cut out for prison."_

_Ezra shook his head, "Spencer, I appreciate what you did. But could you, if you still talk to her, not mention this?" Ezra paused for a moment, shuffled his feet, and looked into the distance before adding, "To Aria?"_

"_I don't talk to her about the stuff with A… after everything happened, she just… she can't listen to it."_

_Ezra pulled his bottom lip and to his mouth and thought about Aria. He knew she would be going to California for college, but he was surprised that she'd already left. They were supposed to go together, get a home-y apartment space, and start a real life together. However, that wouldn't happen anymore. _

"_I'm sorry, again, for everything. Not just being," he stuttered, "A. But I'm so sorry for Aria. I can't imagine how much she-"_

"_Stop, please. You don't get to talk to or about her. Alright?" Spencer ordered._

_Ezra nodded meekly and Spencer half-smiled, "I'll see you around. Bye Mr. Fitz."_

"Thanks for doing that," Aria said, pulling Spencer from her flashback.

"Anytime, I guess," Spencer laughed.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Spencer, Hanna, Emily, and Aria all sat around a room in a fancy hotel. Spencer's wedding was in hours and Spencer was a mess.

"Where is my veil! Hanna, you were in charge of the veil! Where is it!"

"Spencer, calm down! It's right over there," Hanna replied, pointing at a chair.

"Sorry," Spencer said quickly. "It's just that nothing can go wrong today."

"Before we throw that attitude on, can I ask you three something?" Aria asked quietly.

"Sure," Emily answered for everyone.

"Ezra and I talked yesterday. He told me a new A threatened me. Did any of you get new A texts? Or knew Ezra got one?"

Emily bit her lip. "Yeah, we knew he got one. But we haven't."

"You haven't been seeing him, have you?" Spencer questioned. "Since California?"

"We talked yesterday, but that was the first time since he came to see me," Aria told her, leaving out the part that they almost had sex in the country club's pool. They only hadn't because a worker came in and told them they couldn't be in the pool because it was closed. Little did that worker know that Aria's bra was already off, along with Ezra's pants. Aria blushed just thinking of how magical that reunion had been.

"What are you smiling about?" Spencer asked, lowering her brow.

"Oh my God, did you two do it?" Hanna guessed. "Where? In the country club's storage closet or something?"

"Let's just say you could consider that indoor pool sort of sacred ground."

"Well, I'm never swimming there again. Thanks Aria," Emily teased.

"We didn't actually have sex! Who do you think I am?"

Each girl raised their perfect eyebrows and stared their friend down. "If I recall correctly, I remember how much you bragged about you and Fitz' sex life," Hanna said.

"I did not!" Aria blushed.

Spencer giggled, "Do you not remember you're very…_very_… _**very**_ vivid story telling of all of you and Ezra's sexcapades."

Hanna laughed, "Ooh, like the times she told us about how easily she came whenever he touched her -"

Hanna turned and realized Veronica Hastings was standing in the doorway. Veronica's harsh demeanor was covered by embarrassment and blush crept onto her cheeks. Each girl just laughed and Aria face palmed.

Veronica cleared her throat, "Have you seen Melissa? I haven't seen her all morning."

"I was coming into the lobby and I saw her come out of the elevator," Emily remembered.

"Hey I haven't seen Ali either. Didn't you say she was one of your bridesmaids?" Aria asked Spencer.

"Yeah, she is. But Ali told me yesterday that she would be running late."

"If any of you see Melissa outside this room, tell her she needs to get ready. So do all of you."

"We are getting ready," Spencer huffed.

"Just go faster," Veronica ordered. "And stop with the sexcapades." As Veronica closed the door, each girl burst into giggles.

XXXX

Ezra tried tying his bowtie for the fifth time that morning. Spencer had taken it upon herself to deem Ezra a groomsmen since Toby was short one. He knew it was kind gesture, but he knew people would find it awkward that he was a groomsmen for _Spencer Hastings' _wedding. Especially since Ali and Melissa were bridesmaids. They would have to pose for pictures together and he wasn't ready for that. He also hadn't been to a wedding since he was six. He had been his Aunt's ring bearer. Years ago, he figured that the second time he'd walk down an aisle would be for he and Aria's wedding. That dream seemed impossible now, though. He and Aria might be okay, but they'd never be the same. And marriage was built on trust. How could Aria vow to trust him for life after all the lies he told? Sadly, he didn't see his marriage with Aria happening any time soon, if at all.

God, he wished he had never met Alison. Life would've just been so much easier. If he and Ali never met, he and Aria would probably be married with a kid by now. But no, Alison just had to ruin his life.

_Ezra walked into Ali's backyard and immediately spotted her; the bright yellow top illuminated by the side lights on her home. "Ali?" He called out. "Ali, what's wrong?" She turned and had tear-ridden cheeks. About twenty minutes ago, Alison had called Ezra in tears saying that she needed him. Ezra loved her, so of course, he immediately went to her._

"_Ezra, we need to talk," Ali explained._

"_What's wrong, baby?"_

_Alison bit her lip, "Ezra, I'm pregnant."_

_Ezra stood up straighter, as if a pin was just placed in his back. "You're what?!"_

"_I'm also fifteen, not eighteen."_

"_What?!"_

"_I'm sorry I lied, but I just love you so much. I know you wouldn't have been with me if you knew the truth," Ali cried._

_Ezra stopped breathing. He had impregnated a minor. "You're fif… you're fifteen! Fifteen?!"_

"_Ezra, I need money for an abortion. I know you have money. I need, like, nine hundred dollars."_

"_What?" Ezra asked. He knew from previous experiences that abortions were not that expensive._

"_Please, I can't raise a child."_

"_Abortions are not nine hundred dollars," Ezra stated in a voice that sounded like he was talking to a five year old._

"_I need money, though. I'm in trouble."_

_Ezra sighed. "How far along are you?"_

"_Uh, t- two months," Alison stammered._

"_Alison, that's impossible."_

"_What?"_

"_The first time we did it was only, like, two and half weeks ago."_

_Alison gulped. "I meant two weeks. Not two months."_

_Ezra bent down in her face, "Why are you lying to me?"_

"_I'm not, I swear!" Alison argued._

"_Alison, I can tell when you're lying."_

_Ali laughed, "Yeah, right. Look, just give me the money, okay? I know that your parents have money."_

"_And why would I give any of it to you?"_

_Alison stood up straighter and smirked, "I don't think schools accept aspiring teachers who fuck minors."_

"_Are you kidding me?" Ezra screamed._

"_Do I look like I'm kidding?" Ali smiled sinisterly._

"_You wouldn't do that," Ezra stated. "You're bluffing."_

"_I bet your mother wouldn't be that happy, either…"_

"_Stop it," Ezra warned._

"_Give me the money," Alison ordered, "Or your life will be ruined. I own you now, Ezra."_

_Before Ezra could stop himself, he heard a shattering crack. He glanced down at his trembling hand before looking at Alison. She was collapsed on the ground, the side of her head covered in blood. He looked at the rock beside her head and saw a bloodstain on it. _

_Ezra gulped and breathed in and out, trying not to faint. He covered his opened mouth with his trembling hand and was absolutely lost on what to do next. He turned and ran away from her body. What did he just do?_

Ezra shook all his haunting memories away and tried tying his bowtie once more, before giving up. As his hands went to his collar, his phone beeped.

Ezra grabbed his screen and noticed he had a message from 8:09 last night in addition to the one he got a second ago. He pressed the older one first. This must have been the alert he'd gotten after he ran into Aria.

_You just can't resist, can you Fitz? Drop her before I do._

_XO, A_

Ezra gulped and opened the next text.

_Aw, time's up. Don't say I didn't warn you! Too bad Aria won't make it to the wedding, she would have looked beautiful in her bridesmaid's dress. Well, I guess she'll just have to look better in the dress she will be buried in! _

_XO, A_

Buried? Dying?! Before he could gather his thoughts, his phone beeped once more.

_That is, if you can't save her. Tick tock. _

_212 Lima Rd. _

_XO, A_

Ezra had to save her. He threw his bowtie down to the floor and grabbed his keys. He ran out the door and jumped in his car faster than you could say "Aria."

XXXX

"Oh my God, where is Melissa! I didn't even want her to be a bridesmaid! Of course she'd be the one to go rogue," Spencer complained.

After a few minutes of silence Hanna piped up, "Excited for the honeymoon?"

"Are you horny or something, Han?" Emily asked.

Hanna defended herself as the girls bantered. Aria smiled at something Spencer said before feeling her phone vibrate.

_Poor Prince Charming won't make it to the ball thanks to the fairest one of all._

_XO, A_

Aria's smile faded and she felt like she was about to faint. Hanna, who was sitting across from her, noticed and stopped bickering playfully with Emily and Spencer.

Aria's breath went rigid and she held her phone out to Hanna. Hanna recited the message and each girl's heart stopped.

Aria's phone beeped again.

_It's sad that this story won't end with happily ever after. Whatever, Ezra was a Big Bad Wolf in the woods anyway._

_XO, A_

"The cabin?" Spencer asked.

"No, that's too obvious," Hanna disagreed.

Aria started crying and Emily rushed to her side. "Aria, he's ok. He can hold his own."

"Not if A has a gun! He was so worried I would be the one to be hurt, he didn't even think about himself! It's all my fault. A told him to stay away and I wouldn't let him! I'm the reason he's gonna die!"

"Hey, don't say that stuff. He's okay. We just have to find him," Emily told her.

Beep.

_Ezra was as loyal as Boxer. Too bad they both die!_

_XO, A_

"Okay, what the hell does that mean?" Hanna asked.

"Boxer! We read that book freshman year!" Spencer explained. "Animal Farm!"

Emily felt like she'd been hit with a ton of bricks. She – for the first time – figured it out. "I know who A is."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

_Emily felt like she'd been hit with a ton of bricks. She – for the first time – figured it out. "I know who A is."_

"What? Who?"

"XO, A. That was how _Ali_ signed that picture of her on the boat on Cape May."

"Are you sure?"

"I know where Ezra is. He's at that old farm. Where Dr. Sullivan was. Alison visited me there. That has to be it."

"Let's go," Aria demanded, running out the door.

XXXX

Ezra pulled up to the run down, old farm house. There was no sign that anyone was there, but that's usually the way A worked. He cautiously stepped away from his car and headed to the entrance. He slid the door open and stepped inside, preparing to find Aria's dead body. He looked up from his feet and was relieved to find no corpses. But he did get worried. Aria was nowhere to be found.

He caught on and thought,_ Shit. It's a trap._ I _am gonna get killed. Not her_.

Before he could react, the door slid shut and locked. He heard the clack of heels from outside as he tried with all his strength to pull it open.

"You won't be able to open that," a voice called out. Before Ezra could turn to see who it was, despite already recognizing the voice, a bag covered his head.

XXXX

Emily sped down the freeway, trying to get back to the barn as fast as possible. The only thing that was slowing her down were the people along for the ride. Aria kept sobbing and saying it was her fault. Spencer griped about her wedding most likely not happening, and Hanna complained about how small her shoes were.

"Would all of you shut up!" Emily screamed. Each girl winced and muttered apologizes. "Sorry, but all of your complaints are really distracting. We need a plan."

Spencer nodded, "Uh, yeah… Emily, you know where the entrance of the barn is right?"

"Right. I was thinking you and Hanna would get to Alison, while me and Aria get Ezra out okay."

"I can't do it. I can't," Aria cried.

Emily rolled her eyes. "You can't do what?"

"Go in!" Aria cried. "What if he's dead when we get inside?"

"He's not dead!" Emily argued.

Aria whimpered, "How do you know!?"

"I just do," Emily explained. "Ali is not gonna kill anyone!"

That's what they were all hoping at least. Yeah, Ezra had lied to each and every one of them, but each girls, sans Aria, knew how much he wanted to protect her from the new A. He got a burner phone, made up code words, and met up with them in a soundproof location just to keep Aria safe. He wasn't the bad guy anymore. They could trust him.

XXXX

Ezra's wrists were probably purple from cut off circulation because A had tied his wrists so tightly to the chair he had been placed on. His ankles hurt from how tightly they had been tied down as well. He couldn't see anything, due to the sack still over his head. His breathing was unstable and he groaned from pain.

He heard clacks of heels before him and felt hands left the bag off his head. To Ezra's surprise, it wasn't the person he had heard earlier. It was Melissa Hastings.

She placed a sick twisted smile on her face and said, "I bet you didn't expect me to be here!"

Ezra glanced from side to side, looking for Alison. Melissa, realizing what he was looking for, assured him, "Don't worry, she'll be back."

"Why are you doing this?"

Melissa slapped him hard and Ezra felt the side of his face sting.

"You ruined my life, Ezra. You killed my husband and then named me. You were never supposed to tell anyone who was on the A-Team and certainly not the cops!"

"I had to, okay?" Ezra protested. "It was spiraling out of control and it had to be stopped."

"And you had to tell the cops and have a big, public trial?"

"It wouldn't have stopped without cops involved. You know it, I know it, everyone knows it."

"Shut up!" She slapped him again.

"Calm down, Melissa," Ali demanded. Ezra's head snapped up as Alison approached the two of him.

"I bet you thought you'd seen the last of me," Alison giggled.

"Alison," Ezra whispered. Ali only smirked and turned around. "Mona, untie him please. He's no fun tied up."

Ezra's eyes bulged. Did she just say Mona? And sure enough, Mona appeared with a knife and approached Melissa and Alison. Mona quickly whispered something into Ali's ear and Alison smirked and grabbed the knife.

She went forward and bent over. She whispered into Ezra's ear, "Wonder why I'm doing this?" she dragged the knife along his jaw. Ezra stayed silent. "Aw, come on. You're no fun!" Ezra refused to talk, though.

"Well, I'll tell you anyway," Alison sighed. "You are the reason I hid for so long. You are the reason I have a huge scar on the side of my face. You are why I was buried alive."

Ezra swallowed hard and kept staring forward, ignoring the aching pain in his ankles and wrist and cheeks.

"You really love her, don't you?" Alison asked, standing straight again. "Don't you?"

Ezra did really love Aria, but refused to speak.

"Did you love her more than me?"

Ezra bit hit tongue. Ali let out a chilling chuckle, "Wrong answer." She threw her fist straight in Ezra's face. Ezra winced and was shocked how much Alison DiLaurentis could pack a punch. "Too bad she's never going to see you alive again."

Punch after punch, Ezra felt a metallic taste in his mouth more and more. He could feel the bruises that were sure to appear later on. Why wasn't Alison just killing him?

Alison dropped her fist when she heard the sound of tires crunch gravel. They were here. "Melissa, go get it." Melissa obeyed and scurried to a shelf in the barn. She retrieved an object and handed it over to Alison.

"Here goes nothing," Alison muttered. She wrapped her finger around the trigger and fired straight at Ezra.

**(A/N:) So there you have it! It's Alison! Props to bite-me-im-irish to figuring it out! Also, just a reminder, this is au as of 4x18 so that's why Alison isn't as tragic as she is currently in the series! Also, I am SO sorry that I haven't updated this in like a week! I've been really busy and scatterbrained!**

**Oh and that finale! I can't even… WHEN EZRA GOT SHOT I DIED INSIDE like no joke. I was crying harder than the girls in that scene! And JESSICA noooo! I had just started liking her too! Damn… But jeez, I can't wait until June 10****th****! **

**DON"T FORGET TO REVIEW!**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

As the girls pulled up, they recounted their plans. Before they could go over everything, though, they were startled by a loud pop. Was that a _gunshot_?

Aria screamed and ran out of the car. Each girl followed her, but Spencer grabbed Hanna's arm. "Alison's got to just be leaving if she just shot him. Let's go to the back." Hanna nodded and led the way.

Emily, oblivious to the fact that Hanna and Spencer had left her side, continued to chase after Aria. Aria reached the gate and let out another scream. "It's locked!" she cried.

Emily grabbed a bobby pin out from her up-do and went to lock picking. She thanked the heavens that Spencer had taught her how. "Hurry!" Aria shouted.

As Hanna and Spencer chased new A – Alison – through the woods, Spencer was beyond happy she made each bridesmaid wear the same color dress: red. It was easy to spot the culprit. But, to both girls surprise, there were two red dresses. Spencer halted and muttered, "Melissa."

XXXX

Emily got the lock unlocked and slid open the barn door. When she opened it a few inches, she immediately spied Ezra's limp head. Her stomach plummeted.

"Emily? Emily, pull open the door!" Aria ordered, getting closer to the open crack.

"Aria…"

"What?" Emily made a move to hug her, but Aria dodged it and pulled the door open the rest of the way. She saw the sight Emily had and let out a sob. "No! No!" Aria screamed.

Hanna and Spencer both heard Aria's heart wrenching screams from the woods, but continued on the hunt for Alison and Melissa.

Aria stepped into the barn and stared at Ezra's head. He was still in his tux and his ankles were strapped to the chair. His skin was eerily pale and his face was marred with a bloody, sliced cheek. Then Aria noticed the blood spilling from his torso.

Her head was pounding and she felt the walls closing in around her. _This can't be happening. This can't be happening!_

"I need an ambulance!" Emily shouted into her phone from outside, but Aria barely heard her. She knelt down a few feet in front of Ezra, unable to move any closer, petrified whether to see if he was dead or alive. All she saw in that moment was the blood dripping onto his dress pants. Suddenly all the thoughts of it being her fault dissipated and were overshadowed with pure hatred. Aria screamed for the umpteenth time, "Alison!"

Hanna was hot on Melissa tail. She was only a few feet away when she heard Aria scream Alison's name. Melissa must have heard it too because she paused and turned her head to the barn. Hanna took this to her advantage and tackled her best friend's sister in the quick moment. The two quarreled and it was safe to say that each of their expensive dresses were ruined. Finally, Hanna got the upper hand and pinned her down.

Spencer saw Hanna take down Melissa and took it as encouragement to go get Alison. She was stopped, though, when something red flashed past her. It was Aria. Aria pumped her short legs as fast as they could and she barreled straight into Alison.

Aria straddled her ex-best friend and wrapped her hand around her neck. "Why'd you kill him!? Why!" Wrath filled her veins and she punched Alison straight in her pretty, little face. She kept going and going until Alison didn't struggle. By this point, Spencer had pulled Aria away from Ali's body.

Spencer melted into Spencer's arms and sobbed. "That heartless bitch!"

"Aria, go back to the barn. Go!"

Aria did as she was told and Spencer pulled Alison to her feet. Alison gasped for air as Spencer pulled Alison's hands behind her back as if Spencer were a cop arresting someone. "Thanks for ruining my wedding."

Emily hung up with 911 after they said they were coming now. Emily tiptoed into the barn and stood before Ezra's badly beaten body. She heard him groan and her heart did a flip. She crouched down and carefully tilted his chin up. "Ezra? Ezra?!"

"Aria?" He murmured.

"She'll be here in a second, okay? You're gonna be fine, okay? You're gonna stay alive, okay?"

Emily grabbed a pair of wire clippers and went to work on his bindings. Aria walked in and let out a whimper. Just seeing his face physically hurt her. "Is he… Is he alive?" Aria stammered.

"For now, he is. He asked for you," Emily informed. "An ambulance is on its way."

Aria quickly knelt in front of her soul mate, her one true love, and carefully stroke his non blood soaked cheek. "Ezra?" He didn't say anything, but Aria could tell he was still alive. She sighed with relief and wrapped her arms around his neck.

After a few minutes, an ambulance came and two people grabbed Ezra's limp body and boarded it onto a stretcher. Cops went in the woods and gathered Melissa Hastings and a bruised Alison DiLaurentis. The police had also found Mona Vanderwaal hiding behind a tree further in the woods. They were all shoved in the back of a police car and drove away.

Ezra's body was pushed into the back of the ambulance and Aria sobbed as her three best friends each held her tight. All their eyes were damp, but Hanna cried a little harder than Spencer and Emily just because this moment all felt too déjà vu. It seemed like just yesterday it was Caleb's shot up body being loaded into an ambulance. She remember begging the paramedics to let her ride with them to the hospital, but they refused because she wasn't family. She broke away from the girls and went up to one of the EMTs. "Um, could you let her," Hanna pointed to Aria "ride in the ambulance with him?"

"Is she family?"

"She's his wife," Hanna lied.

The EMT nodded, "Ok, go get her."

Hanna smiled and ran up to Aria. She plucked a ring off her finger and shoved it on Aria's ring finger. "If anyone asks, you're his wife. That's the only way you can ride in the ambulance with him."

Aria, who was in such a daze, hugged and thanked Hanna before running to the ambulance. She stepped inside and the car drove off.

Ezra opened his eyes and realized Aria was staring down at him. He was so confused. At that moment, all he remembered were the texts saying that Aria was dying. "Are you okay?"

Aria laughed. "Are _you_?"

**(A/N:) Sad news guys… there's only ONE more chapter! Get me five reviews and I'll post it sooner! Until then, bye lovely readers! I hope you're all surviving the hiatus!**


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

Ezra woke up to the sound of steady beeping. He sat up, but immediately regretted it. He felt a shooting pain in his stomach and instantly realized he was in a hospital. Memories flooded back to him and he started breathing heavy.

"You're up!" Aria said happily. "Hey, hey, everything's okay, babe."

Ezra started to open his mouth, but a nurse interrupted him. "Mrs. Fitz, here's the last form you have to fill out."

The nurse handed Aria a clipboard and Aria blushed, knowing Ezra just heard what the nurse just called her. The nurse checked Ezra's stitches and IV fluids before exiting. Once she was out the door, Ezra turned to Aria, who was still in her bridesmaid dress. "Mrs. Fitz?"

Aria lolled her head. "The only way I could ride with you in the ambulance was if I said I was your wife. So, as far as the hospital knows, I'm Mrs. Aria Fitz." Aria concluded her statement by holding up her left hand and showing the ring that Hanna threw on her finger.

"Aria Fitz… I like the sound of that," Ezra laughed.

Aria smiled, but a wave of sadness swept over her, and tears dripped down her cheeks.

"What? Aria, I'm kidding about the last name. I know… baby steps. I was just saying it because…"

"Ezra, it's not that," she sighed, standing up and nearing his bed.

She placed her hand in his and he looked up at her. "What's wrong, Aria?"

Aria let new tears fall and cried, "I didn't think you were gonna make it. When I first saw you in the barn… you were so pale. And in the ambulance, your heart stopped for a second and the paramedics went into, like, red alert."

"I'm sorry I scared you," Ezra whispered. "I'm fine, though. I'm alive."

"Barely!" Aria argued. "You would be fine if it weren't for me."

"Hey," he soothed. He pulled her onto the bed and rubbed circles on her back. "I love you. If getting shot is what it takes to keep you safe, I'll take a bullet any day."

"Ezra…" Aria warned.

"No really. I love you, Aria. I'd do anything for you."

"I love you, too, Ezra. I love you," she repeated, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"We're okay," he assured. "We're both okay."

Aria pulled away and wiped her eyes. He took her hands in his and looked her in the eyes. "I'm in love with you. I know I messed that up before… I messed it up badly. But, I'm glad we've moved past it. I don't know what I'd do if you just went on forever hating me."

"I could never, ever hate you, Ezra. You hurt me and broke my heart, but ever since you came to California, it just feels… we just feel so right."

"Aria, I know you said baby steps, but I just... okay, for real this time…." Ezra paused and took a deep breath. He slipped Hanna's ring off Aria finger and held it in his hands. "Aria Montgomery, will you marry me?"

Aria smiled and her tears turned happy. "Yes. Of course!"

Ezra smiled and slipped the ring back to where it was. Ezra pulled her into a kiss and it was one of their bests ever. Everything felt like it had just fallen into place. They might not have been the first to get married out of her friends, but they would, without a doubt, be the second.

Aria broke the kiss, but kept her arms around Ezra's neck. She laughed and teased her _fiancé_, "My dad is gonna kill you…"

Ezra laughed and honestly couldn't wait to see the look on Byron's face when Aria revealed that she and Ezra were engaged. Ezra looked at Aria and smiled, "We'll figure that out another day."

**(A/N:) Well, that's the end! Happy, cheesy ending, I know, but I'm proud of it! Anyways, thank you to everyone who read this little fanfic of mine! I'd like to thank bite-me-im-irish (who is literally such an inspiration for me writing ezria and I advise everyone to go read ALL of her stories because she's amazing), obsessedwithezria, b26forever, HarrylovesGinny09, OfficialEzrianxX (check out all of her stuff too! She's an amazing ezria writer!) and 4Ezria who reviewed every chapter! I love all of you for reviewing and favoriting and following and all of those notifications do NOT go unnoticed! Thanks again and be sure to check out my new multichapter Shot in the Dark. Check out my one shots too if you're interested :) **

**And for the last time, review! review! review!**

**Bye! **

**Tumblr: ezras-turtleneck**


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